3» 



MEMOIRS 



Ox 1 TT£E 



RET. JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON, D.D., 

FIRST PROFESSOR OF THEOLOGY IN THE REFORMED PROTESTANT 
DUTCH CHURCH EN NORTH-AMERICA. 



BY THE LATE 

REV. ALEXANDER GUNN, D.D., 

PASTOR OF THE REFORMED PROTESTANT DUTCH CHURCH IN BLOOMINGDALE, IT. Y. 



A NEW EDITION : 

CORRECTED AND CONDENSED, TVITH THE ADDITION OF SOME NE"W MATTER. 




NEW-YORK : 
BOARD OF PUBLICATION 

OF THE 

REFORMED PROTESTANT DUTCH CHURCH, 
337 Broadway. 
1856. 



Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1856, by 

REV. THOMAS C. STRONG, 

On behalf of the Board of Publication of the Reformed Protestant Dutch Church in 
North- America, in the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the United 
States for the Southern District of New-York. 



JOHN A. GRAY'S 

FIRE-PROOF PRINTING OFFICE, 

16 and 13 Jacob St., N. Y. 



INTRODUCTORY NOTE. 



The first edition of this work was published in the spring of the rear 
1829, and in the autumn of the same year the excellent author was 
called away from all earthly labors. His Ateinoir was prepared in 
compliance with a request of the General Synod of the Protestant 
Reformed Dutch Church, and received the emphatic approval of the 
Eev. Drs. Knox, Cuyler, and ^IcMurray, a committee appointed by that 
body to inspect the work before it went to press. After Dr. Gunn's 
death, the Synod purchased the copyright from his widow. 

In this edition some changes have been introduced. A few errone- 
ous or inadequate statements of facts have been amended ; the longer 
foot-notes have been either incorporated with the text or transferred to 
an appendix ; the notices of Dr. Livingston's contemporaries have been 
enlarged in all cases where any new materials could be obtained ; a 
copious index has been added, and a constant endeavor has been made 
to condense the narrative into a smaller compass. The work when 
first issued met with a favorable reception, and was extensively useful. 
The Board of Publication trust that in its present form it will be yet 
more widely circulated, and do excellent and increasing service in the 
cause of the Master, especially among the churches of our own denom- 
ination. They take pleasure in acknowledging the kindness of James 
Bo Gere, Jr., Esq., of Xew-Tork, and aTaerice E. Yiele. Esq.. of Al- 
bany, by whose Christian liberality the expense of stereotyping the 
volume has been defrayed. 



CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER I. 

HIS ANCESTRY. 

PAGE 

Introductory remarks — The Earl of Linlithgow — The Key. John 
Livingston of Ancrum — Robert Livingston— Gilbert Livingston, 11 



CHAPTER H. 

EARLY LIFE, 1746-1765. 

Lirth — Early education — Admission into Yale College — Attain- 
ments — Study of the law — Amiable character while a youth 
— Early serious impressions — Conversion — Views of certain doc- 
trines — Further religious exercises — Sermon of Whitefield — 
State of his Health — A singular deliverance — Abandons the 
study of the law — Views and exercises in reference to study- 
ing for the ministry — Remarks, 16 

CHAPTER III. 

THE STATE OF THE CHURCH ABOUT THE YEAR 1765. 

Sketch of the history of the Church from its rise — Influence of 
the Classes of Amsterdam — Case of Rensselaer — Plan of a Ccetus 
agreed upon, 1737 — Constituted in 1747— Formation of a Classis 
proposed in 1753 — Reasons for it — The friends of an independ- 



vi 



CONTENTS. 



ent Classis called Coetus— Opponents Conferentie — Sad effects of 
the controversy — Introduction of the English language into the 
services of the Church — Causes of it — Controversy it excited in 
the church of New- York — Consistory resolve to call an English 
minister — Dr. Laidlie called — His character and usefulness — 
Civil suit against the Consistory — Concluding remarks, 43 



CHAPTER IV. 

CIRCUMSTANCES RELATING TO HIS THEOLOGICAL STUDIES 
AND TO THE CHURCH OF NEW-YORK, 1765-1767. 

Influence of the divisions in the Church on Mr. Livingston — His 
own statement of his reasons for remaining in it — Mode of spend- 
ing his time in the spring of 1765 — His opinion of the theatre — 
First interview with Dr. Laidlie — Prepares to go to Holland — 
Arrival at Amsterdam and attentions received there — Visit to the 
Rev. Mr. Schorelenburgh of Tienhoven — Reception by Professor 
Bonnet at Utrecht — Second visit to Mr. Schorelenburgh and its 
happy consequences — Further account of the suit against the 
Consistory of New- York — Result of the trial — Extracts from let- 
ters of Dr. Laidlie in reference to it — Concluding remarks, 68 

CHAPTER V. 

FROM THE COMMENCEMENT OF HIS STUDIES IN THE UNIVER- 
SITY OF UTRECHT UNTIL HIS RETURN TO NEW-YORK, 

1766-1770. 

Introductory — The Professors he attended — Manner of studying 
theology — Pious young friends — Professor Elsnerus — Painful 
conflict upon the subject of Providence — Conversion of a stranger 
by his conversation — Conversion of a student of law — The case 
of Dr. D. — Conference of believers from the four quarters of the 
earth — Baptism by sprinkling in a Baptist church — Dr. "Wither- 
spoon's visit — Measures contemplated between him and Dr. L. 
for the Dutch Church in America-— The Ccetus party attempt to 
erect an academy in New- Jersey — Some of the Conferentie prefer 
a divinity professor in King's College — Mr. L. meditates a con- 
nection with Princeton College — Extracts of letters upon the 



COXTEZnTS, 



vii 



subject — Church of New-York think of calling another English 
preacher — Mr. L. spoken of — Fears of the weakness of his voice 
— His aversion to the observance of holy days — Letters to him 
upon the subject — Call made out and forwarded — Licensure and 
promising character of his first efforts — Examinations for the de- 
gree of Doctor of Divinity — Embarks for England — Interview 
with Dr. Kennicott — Arrival at New-York, ... 95 

CHAPTER VI. 

FROM HIS RETURN TO NEW-YOBK UNTIL THE CLOSE OF THE 
REVOLUTIONARY AVAR, 1770-1783. 

Arrives on the Lord's day — First sermon — His labors — General 
acceptance — Prepares the way for a reconciliation between the 
Ccetus and Conferentie — Induces the Consistory to invite a gene- 
ral meeting of ministers and elders — Such convention held its 
proceedings, and results — Reassembling of the convention and 
consummation of the union in 1772 — Important part performed 
by Dr. L. in this business — Measures relative to the appointment 
of a Professor of Theology — Dr. L. recommended by the Classis 
of Amsterdam and the Theological Faculty of Utrecht — Conven- 
tion breaks up suddenly without making an appointment, because 
of the war — Philip Livingston — Dr. L. marries his daughter — Re- 
moves to Kingston — Thence to Albany — Loss of his Journal — 
Removal to Livingston's manor — To Poughkeepsie — The Line of 
Influence — Letter to Dr. Westerlo — Return to Xew-York, . 132 

CHAPTER VII. 

from; the resumption of his pastoral charge till the 
adoption of the constitution of the church, 1783— 
1792. 

Reopening of the churches — Dr. L. sole pastor — Letter on a State 
University — On Queen's College — On forming a Classis in the 
Southern District — Elected Professor of Theology — Inaugural 
oration — Correspondence — Letters from Dr. Erskine — Call of the 
church on the Rev. S. Tan Aorsdaalen — Extracts from it— First 
attempt at a correspondence between the Dutch Presbyterian and 



viii 



CONTENTS. 



Associate Reformed Churches — Letters upon Union College — Act 
of the Legislature respecting the election of trustees in congre- 
gations — Dr. L.'s successful efforts to prevent this from inter- 
fering with the practice of the Dutch Church — Impaired health 
— Blessing upon his labors — Removal from the city — Call of Dr. 
Romeyn, and letters to him — Call of Mr. Linn — Call of Mr. Kuy- 
pers — Address of the Classical letter from Amsterdam noticed by 
Dr. L. — Chairman of Committee to select Psalms and Hymns — 
Letters to Dr. Romeyn on the subject — Letter to Dr. Harden- 
bergh — To Mrs. Judge Livingston — Dr. Meyer and Dr. "Westerlo 
— Dr. L. one of a Committee to prepare the Constitution of the 
Church — Letters on that subject — Adoption of the Constitution, 163 

CHAPTER VIII. 

FROM THE ADOPTION OF THE CONSTITUTION UNTIL HIS AC- 
CEPTANCE OF THE CALL TO NEW-BRUNSWICK, 1792- 
1810. 

Constitution published under Dr. L.'s inspection — His letter re- 
specting a proposed union of Queen's and Princeton Colleges — 
Intimacy with Drs. Mason, Eodgers, and Kunzic — Attentions to 
youth — Letters of Lindley and John Murray — Feeble health — 
Measures of Synod for his relief— Eemoves to Long Island — Dis- 
couragements — Letters to Dr. Romeyn — Synod retract their pro- 
mise of support, and appoint additional Professors of Theology — 
Eeturns to New- York — Letters to Dr. Romeyn — Plan of the pro- 
fessorate again altered — Connection of Dr. Linn with the church of 
New- York dissolved — Letter of Dr. L. on hearing of his death — 
Zeal for missions and his missionary sermons — Revival of Queen's 
College — Covenant between the Synod and the Trustees — Dr. L. 
called to the Professorship of Theology and to the Presidency of 
the Institution — Increase of infirmities — Drs. Schureman and 7 
Brodhead called to the church of New- York, . . . 201 

CHAPTER IX. 

FROM HIS REMOVAL TO NEW-BRUNSWICK TO HIS DEATH, 
1810-1825. 

His feelings at the removal — Announces his intention to the Consis- 
tory -Their reply — Settlement at New-Brunswick — Prospects 



CONTENTS. 



of the school — Publishes l ' a Funeral Service'" — Makes a new 
selection of Psalms and Hymns — Death of Dr. Condict and two 
promising youths — Noticed in the Baccalaureate address- — De- 
pressed state of the College — Attempt made to bring the school 
back to New- York — Dr. L.'s letters concerning this — Death of 
Mm Livingston — Letters respecting it — Plan to convert Queen's 
College into a theological college — Letter from Dr. J. B. Romeyn 
in Holland — Synod adopt the plan of Dr. L. — Dr. Sehureman cho- 
sen Professor of Pastoral Theology — Trustees accede to the Sy- 
nod's plan, but unable to accomplish it — Dissertation on mar- 
riage with a deceased wife's sister — Establishment of two schools 
contemplated — Letters to L L. Kip — Resolutions of Synod and 
letters of Dr. L. on the subject — Question of removal of the 
school put at rest — Dr. L.'s submission — Letters — Loss of two 
granddaughters — Letters — Publication of his Lectures request- 
ed — Suggests the raising of an ample fund for the school — The 
measure adopted by Synod and successful — Rutgers College — 
Letter on the Dutch Missionary Society — Devotional frame — 
State of his health — Letters on the decease of a grandchild — 
Death — Funeral — Resolutions of Synod, .... 243 



CHAPTER X. 

HIS GEXEEAL CHARACTER. 

His person — Infirmities — G-eneral excellencies — Discretion — At- 
tachment to evangelical truth, and mode of preaching — Tender- 
ness to the young — Devotional feelings — Anecdotes in illustration 
—Rev. Mr. Forrest's letter on his character — Dr. Green's — Dr. 
Janeway's — Dr. Miller's — Conclusion, . . . . 316 



APPENDIX A. 

The Rev. John Livingston of Ancrum, 351 

APPENDIX B. 

The Rev. Jacobus Theodoras Frelinghuysen, . . . 359 
1* 



CONTENTS. 



APPENDIX C. 

PAGE 

The Civil Suit about the Eight of Toting, 11 65, . . 362 

APPENDIX D. 

The Charter of Queen's College, 3G9 

APPENDIX E. 

The Plan of Union, 17 ?2, ...... 3*72 

APPENDIX E. 

The Rev, Jacobus Rutsen Hardenbergh, D.D., . . „ 380 
APPENDIX G. 

The Rev. Theodoric Romeyn, D.D., ... . 3S3 

APPENDIX H. 

The Rev. Gerardus A. Kuypers, D.D., .... 385 

APPENDIX I. 

The Rev. John N. Abeel, D.D., .38*7 

APPENDIX J. 

The Rev. John Schureman, D. D., and Rev. Jacob Brodhead, D.D., 389 
APPENDIX K. 

The Rev. Elias Yan Bunschooten, .... 395 
APPENDIX L. 

The Rev. Paschal N. Strong, . . . . . 399 

APPENDIX M. 

The Rev. Selah S. Woodhull, D.D., ..... 401 



MEMOIR 

OF THE 

REV. JOHN HENRI LIVINGSTON, D.D. 



CHAPTEE I. 

HIS ANCESTRY. 

The life of a minister of the Gospel may deserve to 
be written on various grounds. Sometimes the fidel- 
ity, the rare mental and spiritual gifts, the large suc- 
cess of one who confines his labors to a single charge, 
may entitle him to special and lasting remembrance, as 
an illustration of God's grace, and as an example to 
those who follow him. In other cases, a minister's 
influence upon the Church at large, his activity in pro- 
moting her general interests, his connection with her 
ministry, her institutions, and her growth, may call for 
some printed memorial of his life. Or the fact that he 
flourished in the forming period of a particular branch 
of Zion, that he was identified with her early his- 
tory, and contributed to give shape to her external 
polity, may render his biography a most desirable 
acquisition to her literature. On any one of these 
grounds the preparation of this volume may be justi- 



12 



MEMOIR OF JOHN" HENRY LIVINGSTON". 



fied ; but it so happens that they all concur to warrant 
its appearance. Dr. Livingston was an unusually elo- 
quent preacher and faithful pastor ; and his labors in 
either department of ministerial life, were greatly blessed 
to the conversion of sinners and the edification of saints. 
But his efficiency extended far beyond the bounds of 
any one parish. As for many years the senior pastor 
of the oldest, largest, and most influential church in the 
communion to which he belonged, and as for a still 
greater number of years, the professor under whom 
nearly all the clergymen of the last generation were 
trained, he wielded an influence as weighty as it was 
wholesome upon the entire denomination. Besides all 
this, he was in a certain sense the father of the Church 
under her existing polity. It pleased God to use him 
as the means of restoring harmony where it had long 
been interrupted, of binding discordant brethren and 
parties into one whole, and of leading the American 
churches of Holland origin out of a state of colonial 
vassalage and dependence into the broad freedom of 
independent existence and activity, knowing no sove- 
reign but Zion's Great Head and no ultimate rule be- 
yond His written word. The concurrence of these cha- 
racteristics in the same man has justly rendered his 
memory dear to the Beformed Protestant Dutch Church, 
and made her desire to have the details of his useful 
life accessible to all her people. 

The subject of this memoir belonged to a family 
which traces its lineage back to the Scottish Lord Liv- 
ingston, afterwards Earl of Linlithgow, a title derived 
from the castle of that name, of which he became the 
hereditary keeper, and which enjoys some celebrity as 



HIS AInCESTEY. 



13 



being the place where the unfortunate Mary, Queen of 
Scots, first saw the light. But the family claims a yet 
loftier nobility than this, if we adopt the standard ex- 
pressed in the well-known lines of Cowper : 

" My boast is not, that I deduce my birth 
From loins enthroned, and rulers of the earth ; 
But higher far my proud pretensions rise — 
The son of parents passed into the skies." 

The grandson of the Earl became minister of the par- 
ish of Monyabrock, in Stirlingshire, in which he was 
succeeded by his son. Both of these it appears were 
godly and useful men, but their fame has been swal- 
lowed up in that of the third one of the same race 
and name, who took upon him the cure of souls, Mr. 
John Livingston, ever memorable in the Church of 
God by his connection with the communion at the kirk 
of Shotts, June 20, 1630. The prominent place this 
eminent servant of God occupies in the ecclesiastical 
histories of the time, his banishment to Holland, his 
zeal for the cause of truth, and his unexampled useful- 
ness, entitle his name to more than a passing mention 
in this volume ; and accordingly a sketch of his check- 
ered career will be found in the Appendix, (A.) Smith, 
in his History of New- York, first published in 1756, 
speaking of him, makes this remark: "His descend- 
ants are very numerous in this province, and the 
family in the first rank for their wealth, morals, and 
education." 

These descendants all sprang from his son Kobert, 
the great-grandfather of the subject of this memoir, 
who came to America, it is probable, soon after his 



14 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



father's death in 1672. The report of a committee of 
Council made to the Governor of New- York in 1753, 
states that the patent for the manor of Livingston was 
granted in 1686. Smith, the historian before referred 
to, says that Eobert Livingston was "a principal agent 
for the convention" which met in Albany in 1689, to 
proclaim their allegiance to William and Mary ; that 
"the measures of the convention were very much 
directed by his advice;" and that "he was peculiarly 
obnoxious to his adversaries, because he was a man of 
sense and resolution." He went afterwards to England, 
for the purpose of attending to his affairs ; and while 
there, was the means of starting an enterprise against 
the pirates, at that period very numerous and destruc- 
tive. It is no small evidence of the regard entertained 
for him and of the confidence reposed in his judgment, 
that the King, Lord Chancellor Somers, the Duke of 
Shrewsbury, the Earls of Eomney and Oxford, and 
other persons of distinction, engaged in the adventure, 
though it ultimately failed through the villainy of Kid, 
who was intrusted with its execution. 

He was connected by marriage with the ancient and 
very respectable Schuyler family, and had three sons, 
Philip, Eobert, and Gilbert. Among the children of 
Philip were — Philip Livingston, Esq., one of the illus- 
trious band of patriots, who signed The Declaration of 
Independence ; and William Livingston, LL.D., for a 
series of years Governor of the State of New- Jersey, a 
man of warm piety, and distinguished for the extraor- 
dinary powers of his mind. Eobert had only one son, 
(Eobert,) the head of the Clermont family, as it is some- 



HIS ANCESTRY. 



15 



times called, by way of distinction, to which belonged 
the late celebrated Chancellor Livingston. 

Gilbert had five sons and two daughters. Henry, 
his first son, and the father of John H., was an amiable, 
dignified, and excellent man. Blessed by nature with 
a strong mind, liberally educated, of elegant manners, 
and irreproachable in morals, he enjoyed through a 
long life, the esteem and confidence of the community. 
He was for a considerable period a member of the 
Colonial Legislature of New-York ; and was, by letters 
patent, proprietor of the office of clerk of the county 
in which he resided. This office he retained after the 
revolutionary war until his death. When the arduous 
struggle for independence commenced, he espoused 
with zeal a cause dear to every genuine American, and 
throughout the contest, was a decided friend to his 
country. 

He was born September 8th, 1714, and died Febru- 
ary 10th, 1799, at his paternal estate, which is situate 
in Dutchess county, near Poughkeepsie, on the banks 
of the Hudson, and which is now in the possession of 
the widow and children of his grandson, Col. H. A. 
Livingston, having belonged to the family for more 
than a century. 



16 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



CHAPTEE XL 

HIS EARLY LIFE. 
A.D. 1746-1765. 

John Henry Livingston, the son of Henry Living- 
ston, and Susanna Conklin, Lis wife, was born at 
Poughkeepsie, New- York, on the 30th day of May, 
A.D. 1746. 

Neither pains nor expense were spared in his educa- 
tion. Till he was seven years of age, he received no 
other than parental instruction, but at this period, there 
being no school in his native place, he was sent to 
Fishkill, and put under the care of the Eev. Chauncey 
Graham. When he had been with this gentleman be- 
tween two and three years, his father obtained a com- 
petent private tutor for him. He was accordingly 
brought home, and Mr. Moss Kent, (the father of the 
late Chancellor James Kent, Esq.,) a gentleman whose 
qualifications for the trust were very respectable, and 
of whose faithful attentions to him, he ever cherished 
a grateful recollection, was charged with the superin- 
tendence of his studies. With the assistance of such 
an instructor, and possessing a docile disposition and 
an inquisitive mind, his improvement, the two follow- 
ing years, in classical literature, and in such other 
branches as were then taught to young men preparing 



HIS EAELY LIFE, 



17 



for admission into college, was considerable. Speaking 
of the advantages he enjoyed at this time, in a short 
memoir written by himself, he says : "I proceeded with 
delight and success in my studies, during the years 
1755 and 1756/' 

The ensuing year, he was placed in a grammar- 
school at New-Milford, in Connecticut, under the direc- 
tion of the Eev. Mr. N. Taylor ; and with this gentle- 
man he continued about a year. Having finished his 
preparatory studies, in Sept., 1758, when only a little 
over twelve years old, he was examined and admitted 
a member of the freshman class of Yale College, in 
New-Haven. 

The country, at the period referred to, was not dis- 
tinguished for literature. Education was in its infancy, 
and what was termed a liberal one, comprehended attain- 
ments, in certain branches at least, which now would hardly 
be deemed a sufficient preparation for commencing a 
collegiate course. The learned men of that day, and 
there were not a few to be found in every profession, 
justly entitled to the appellation, were less indebted to 
early advantages than to their own genius and applica- 
tion for their success in literary pursuits, Classical 
learning in particular was, in several colleges, compar- 
atively held in contempt; and such appears to have 
been the fact in Yale at the time of Mr. Livingston's 
matriculation, though probably, in point of reputation 
and real merit, it was not inferior to any similar insti- 
tution. It was then under the presidency of the Eev, 
Thomas Clapp, a distinguished mathematician, whose 
influence rendered the science of mathematics a leading 
subject of study among his scholars. This they pur- 



18 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



sued with, a degree of enthusiastic ardor ; other sub- 
jeets of equal if not greater importance, being treated 
with comparative neglect. 

Almost immediately, therefore, upon Mr. Living- 
ston's entrance, he, in common with his associates, 
became enamored of the favorite study; and it will 
surprise no one to learn, if his age be kept in mind, that 
in certain branches of it, such as Trigonometry, Navi- 
gation, Surveying, Astronomy, he found some things 
beyond his comprehension. He was chiefly occupied 
with these studies during the first half of his collegiate 
life ; and in riper years, he ever very justly considered 
'that half as having been spent to little purpose. 

As the Latin and Greek languages were but slightly 
studied, the stock of classical knowledge with which he 
had been previously furnished, was not much increased 
while he was in college ; but that knowledge enabled 
him to appear, young as he was, to considerable advan- 
tage among his fellow-students. Some of them, pretty 
well grown up, it has been said, when about to prepare 
their classic exercises, would often pleasantly seat him 
upon their knees, as he was then quite little, and with 
all deference learn of him. He finished his academical 
course, and took the first degree in the arts, in July, 
1762. 

He determined to enter at once upon professional 
studies : and the profession, which he decidedly prefer- 
red to any other, presented to a youth of his promise 
and connections, very powerful attractions. He chose 
the law; and in the autumn of the same year, soon 
after his return from college, commenced his prepara- 
tory reading in the office of Bartholomew Crannel, 



HIS EARLY LIFE. 



19 



Esq., of Poughkeepsie, a gentleman of note as an able 
counsellor and eloquent advocate. He was now, as lie 
supposed, in the broad road to distinction. " Plans 
and views," he says in his own brief memoir, a of future 
eminence engrossed all my wishes, constituted the sum 
of my present enjoyments, and finished the prospects 
of succeeding happiness;" and there can be little ques- 
tion, that, had he prosecuted the study and engaged in 
the business of the profession, he would, before many 
years, have reached its highest honors. The talents he 
possessed, with his dignified and pleasing address, and 
with the influence of a large circle of respected relatives 
and friends, doubtless would have soon elevated him to 
the first place, either at the bar or upon the bench. 

As yet, it does not appear, that he knew any thing of 
the power of religion. He had preserved an unsullied 
moral character through a season of education, which 
ever abounds with temptations to folly, and in circum 
stances of peculiar exposure to such temptations. In 
the sweetness of his natural disposition, in the accom- 
plishments of his mind, in the respect and affection 
with which he behaved to his parents, in diligent atten- 
tion to his studies, in every part of his deportment, he 
was an amiable and hopeful youth, and gave flattering 
presages of no common worth and estimation, when he 
should be more advanced in years and fully employed 
in professional duties. But still he was an almost utter 
stranger to God and religion. He walked according to 
the course of this world. He lacked one thing, that one 
thing, without which all else is vanity. 

It has been observed that " proud views and vain 
desires in our worldly employments are as truly vices 



20 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 

and corruptions, as hypocrisy in prayer or vanity in 
alms." The observation is certainly correct; and it 
applies exactly to the present case. 

Mr. Livingston was actuated, when he made the 
above choice of a profession, by an inordinate ambition 
of the honors of the world ; and the fact clearly evinces 
that he was without hope, in a state of great spirit- 
ual blindness, alienated from the life of Grod through 
the ignorance that was in him. 

The reader must not infer, however, that he was void 
of all serious thoughts. Impressions of divine truth 
had been early made upon his mind, which were never 
wholly erased, and which, when from under the watch- 
ful eyes of his parents, and mingling at pleasure with 
college companions and others, had a happy influence 
upon him. He had been carefully instructed in the 
great doctrines of the Grospel. Though he could not 
intelligently unite in the public worship of Grod, in his 
native place, which was then conducted in the Dutch 
language, yet he had been trained up to a religious 
observance of the Sabbath ; and afterwards, when he 
became a member of college, it was his privilege to hear, 
in a language that he did understand, the precious truths 
of salvation, regularly and faithfully inculcated upon 
the Lord's day. These means, although not imme- 
diately followed by a saving change of heart, were pro- 
ductive of some salutary effects. " While I was yet a 
child," he says, u the solemn impressions of the being 
and presence of God, of my dependence upon him, and 
the awful realities of a future state, were very strong, 
and frequently interrupted me in my play and sports. 
I often left my little companions and sought some 



HIS EARLY LIFE. 



21 



retired spot, where I might pray, without being observed. 
What I prayed for, and what my views and exercises 
in prayer were, I do not now recollect ; but there was 
something of the fear and reverence of God, of the evil 
of sin, and an universal obligation to fulfill every duty, 
which occupied my mind, aroused my conscience, and 
convinced me that I could never be happy, if I remained 
an enemy to God, or willfully transgressed his holy 
commandments. But these first principles or convic- 
tions, whatever they were, did not prove effectual to 
produce conversion. They were changeable and tran- 
sient. They frequently returned, and were as frequently 
forgotten, excepting that they created in me a lively 
and tender conscience, which, through all the giddy 
mazes, violent temptations, and wild eccentricities of 
youth, never wholly forsook me. They excited a rigid 
monitor within my breast, and often silently but pow- 
erfully preserved me from follies and sins which, other- 
wise, I should undoubtedly have perpetrated. I recol- 
lect instances wherein the Lord, with a strong hand 
and discernible interposition, prevented me from com- 
mitting sins where temptations were numerous and 
urgent. These early impressions went no farther. 
The amount of benefits resulting from early parental 
instruction, and from all the ordinances and sermons I 
had heard during my whole life, was nothing more 
than some confused ideas of truths which I did not 
understand or believe. This was my own fault, for I 
had not been in earnest, or desirous to know the Lord 
or obey his word." 

The fault most assuredly was his own ; and he is not 
the only one who has had to acknowledge the neglect 



22 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 

or abuse of precious means of grace. Some, possibly, 
who read these pages can confess, that they have sadly 
disregarded the tears and prayers and faithful instruc- 
tions of pious friends — still living, or peradventure, 
already mouldering in the grave — and that various 
opportunities of religious improvement, through their 
own remissness or obstinacy, have proved of very little 
benefit to their souls. Happy they, who see and own 
their sins, in the exercise of repentance towards God, 
and of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ! If, however, 
he had no clear, distinct perception of evangelical truth, 
no genuine gracious experience, under parental and 
ministerial teaching ; still, as has been before remarked, 
and as is evident from his own words, it was, in a very 
important sense, profitable to him. And though such 
early teaching never had any other effect than simply 
to preserve a young person from the follies and dangers 
to which his intercourse with the world exposes him, 
or to check his waywardness, this alone constitutes an 
ample reward for all the toil and solicitude of the 
teacher, be he a parent or a pastor. 

But the impressions which Mr. Livingston received 
from time to time, were connected, it is believed, more 
closely than he seems to have imagined, with his future 
conversion. They were pleasing indications that the 
Spirit of God was hovering about his path ; and it is 
not improbable that they were the incipent step in that 
renovating process which it was his happiness subse- 
quently to experience. Conviction is not indeed con- 
version, nor is it always followed by conversion. It 
can not, therefore, be relied upon as an infallible sing 
of the presence and operation of saving grace ; yet 



HIS EARLY LIFE. 



more or less conviction precedes conversion ; and, when 
it comes again and again, exciting to prayer and vigil- 
ance and other religious duties, it looks as if the Lord, 
in the dispensations of his mercy, were preparing the 
way for the good work. How far the way is thus pre- 
pared, or the precise connection between the work and 
certain antecedent circumstances which, as means, serve 
to introduce it, will be best known in that world where 
the dealings of God can be accurately retraced, and 
where, upon remembering all that the Lord had done 
for him, the heir of glory will be constrained to exclaim 
— He hath done all things well ! 

Mr. Livingston applied himself assiduously to the 
law until the close of 1764, when his health being a 
good deal unpaired, in consequence, as he supposed, of 
close application to study, he deemed it his duty to give 
up his attendance at the office of Mr. Crannel. This 
retirement gave him abundant leisure for serious reflec- 
tion ; and apprehensive, from some symptoms of pul- 
monary disease, that his glass was nearly run, and that 
he would soon have to appear before the Judge of all 
the earth, the momentous concerns of eternity took en- 
tire possession of his mind. He now saw his true cha- 
racter and condition as a sinner, and for a season was 
in deep distress ; but it pleased the Lord, at length, to 
lift up the light of his reconciled countenance upon 
him, and to give him peace. 

The reader will no doubt be gratified to see his own 
account of a work which resulted in a cordial submis- 
sion to Christ as the Lord, his Eedeemer. 

11 A book," he says, " of Bunyan, I think it was, 
4 G race abounding to the Chief of Sinners/ first excited 



24 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRI ' LIVINGSTON. 



sharp and irresistible alarms in my soul, but I obtained 
no particular instruction nor received any other advan- 
tage from that book. In my father's library, among 
other religious books, I found Doddridge's Eise and 
Progress, etc. This gave me more enlarged and cor- 
rect views of religion than I ever had before. I pe- 
rused it with great attention and much prayer, and 
wished to feel and experience the power of the truths, 
as they occurred in succession. This book was useful 
and blessed to me beyond any uninspired volume I 
ever read. But my chief attention was fixed upon the 
sacred Scriptures. I knew nothing of the peculiar 
nature of a divine revelation, nor of the distinct classes 
of arguments, which prove the Bible to be written by 
men inspired of the Holy Ghost ; but there was an 
internal evidence in that sacred book, there was a 
majesty, sublimity, and authority connected with per- 
spicuity and power, which commanded my attention 
and enjoined obedience. The divine perfections of the 
Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, one God ; and 
his glorious works, as delineated in the Bible, I was 
sure were agreeable to truth. And I found the secrets 
of my heart, my state, my character, my principles, 
and conduct, were all naked and open to the word of 
God. To receive, therefore, that blessed volume, with- 
out hesitation, as the standard of my faith and practice, 
was my ardent wish, being firmly persuaded that I 
should be condemned or accepted agreeably to its infal- 
lible declarations. To understand the Scriptures became 
consequently my earnest study and daily prayer, and to 
them I appealed upon every question which arose in 
my mind. 



HIS EARLY LIFE. 



25 



4 1 Convictions of sin, of guilt, and misery, became 
clear and pungent ; and some confused idea of redemp- 
tion through, a Saviour, and the possibility of pardon, 
and the restoration of my depraved nature, engaged 
my thoughts and prayers, without intermission. For 
several months I could do nothing but read and medi- 
tate, plead at a throne of grace, and weep over my 
wretched and lost estate. As new inquiries and diffi- 
culties arose, and new truths, with their inseparable 
consequences, came under consideration, I repaired to 
the Bible, I supplicated for light and instruction, and 
had to contend, study, and struggle for every article of 
faith in succession." 

" Two doctrines, above all others, engaged my ardent 
attention, and caused a severe and long conflict." 

" The first was the divinity of the Lord Jesus Christ. 
I saw, in his word that he was a great Saviour ; that 
the Father was well pleased in his Son, and that sin- 
ners, the chief of sinners, were accepted in the Beloved. 
I believed that he was able to save, even to the utter- 
most, all who came unto God by him. It was also evi- 
dent, that in all his fullness, he was freely offered in 
the Gospel, and the vilest sinners were authorized and 
commanded to believe in him, to accept him in all his 
glorious offices, and become exclusively his property. 
But if he were only a man, I did not dare to give my- 
self away wholly to him, as I should then, by a solemn 
act, engage to belong to a mere creature, and thus, by 
becoming united even to Jesus, I should not yet come 
home to my God, from whom I had revolted. This 
checked my exercises for a time, and brought me into 
great fears and perplexity ; until, from his word, I ob 

2 



26 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENKY LIVINGSTON. 



tained a clearer discovery of the perfections of God, 
and of the infinite evil of sin. This convinced me that 
no finite arm could vindicate the divine government, 
and rescue me from the curse; that He alone who 
made me could possess authority and power to redeem 
me ; and that my Saviour must not only be truly mam 
but also truly God. I then satisfactorily perceived and 
understood that it was the doctrine of the Bible ; I saw 
it was the uniform declaration of the sacred Scriptures 
that the Son of God was one with the Father ; that he 
that hath seen the Son hath seen the Father ; and that, 
therefore, if I came to Jesus I should come home to 
my God : my Maker would be my husband. Of that 
interesting truth I have never doubted since. 

" The other doctrine which fixed my attention and 
excited much care and study, respected Justification. 

"A conviction of guilt and misery, of pollution and 
inability, assured me of the impossibility of my being 
accepted of God, either in whole or in part, for any 
thing to be produced or performed by me. I was fully 
convinced that without a better righteousness than my 
own, I must and should perish for ever. This convic- 
tion prompted me most attentively to read, and with 
fervent prayer to study the word of God. I made no 
use of commentaries, nor any human aid, but perused 
and compared again and again the sacred Scriptures, 
especially the Prophecy of Isaiah, the Epistles of Paul 
to the Eomans and to the Galatians, the first Epistle of 
Peter, and the Gospel of John. These I attentively 
read, upon these I meditated, and with a sincere desire 
for instruction, continually supplicated the throne of 
grace to be led into the truth, preserved from error, and 



HIS EARLY LIFE. 



27 



established in the doctrine of the Gospel. And it 
pleased the Lord, I trust, to give rne the light and 
instruction I sought. The righteousness of Christ, 
comprising his active and passive obedience, and the 
imputation of that righteousness to every soul who re- 
ceives the Saviour by faith, and thus, by his Spirit, 
becomes united to him, which is the basis upon which 
imputation rests, were rendered so intelligible, clear, 
and convincing to my mind that I considered the result 
to be the teaching of the Holy Spirit by his word, and 
received it and submitted to it, as such, without any 
wavering or carnal disputation. That the atonement 
of Christ was speci&c, complete, and worthy of all 
acceptation, I was sure. 

" These were my views of justification by faith, but 
not for faith. And my belief of the relation of God 
the Eedeemer to all the redeemed, and of the imputed 
righteousness of the precious Saviour, was then so 
decided, clear and full, that although a long life of 
study in this, and other doctrines, has succeeded, I do 
not know that I have ever obtained one new or addi- 
tional idea, respecting the justification of a sinner. All 
I know of it, I gained at that period of my life and of 
my exercises, and no adverse winds of false doctrines 
have ever shaken my faith." 

That these two great fundamental doctines of the 
Gospel, which so clearly exhibit the unsearchable riches 
of Divine grace, and secure all the glory to God, in the 
salvation of a sinner, should at first excite some oppo- 
sition in his mind, is not at all astonishing. They are 
the truths, which the proud, unsanctified heart most 
perfectly hates, and to which, until subdued by the 



28 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



spirit of God, it will not yield an honest submission. 
Few who have passed from death unto life have not 
been sensible of resistance to these cardinal points of 
faith ; yet not one has found solid peace and hope in 
God, till he cordially embraced them. 

But to return to Mr. Livingston's description of his 
religious exercises : 

" During these studies and conflicts, a sense of guilt 
increased, and the most distressing convictions of sin 
excited amazement and terrors, which no words can 
express. My unbelief prevented me from closing with 
the gracious calls of the Gospel ; my heart remained so 
hard and stubborn, and my fears became so alarming 
that I was reduced to the brink of despair, and felt and 
experienced what it would be improper even to men- 
tion. In this dreadful horror of soul, and fearful state 
of mind, I continued many weeks ; and had it continued 
much longer, or arose a little higher, I must have died. 
I believed the Lord Jesus was able to save me, but I 
could not believe that he was willing to receive and 
save a wretch, who had sinned so much, and resisted 
his grace so long as I had done. At length it pleased 
him to conquer my unbelief, by convincing me that if 
the Saviour was able to save me, he must, most assur- 
edly, be also willing, and that as such, he had pledged 
himself not to cast out any who came to him. This 
broke the chains and brought me into liberty. This 
dispelled doubts, removed fears, and conquered des- 
pondency. This gave me free and cheerful access to a 
throne of grace. I found a warrant and freedom to 
give myself away to the blessed Jesus, and I did most 



HIS EARLY LIFE. 



29 



unreservedly do it, with, the greatest willingness, sin- 
cerity, joy, and eagerness, that I ever performed any 
act in my life. Now consolations succeeded to griefs. 
I liyed by faith. I found rest, and knew what it was 
to have Christ living in me. I had joy and peace in 
believing. I was conscious that I had received the 
divine Eedeemer in all his offices, as offered to sinners 
in his word ; that I had devoted myself, for time and 
eternity to him, and was no longer my own ; and that 
I had actually become united to him. I have never 
doubted of this transaction, through, all the trials of 
faith, to this day." 

The struggle between sin and grace, related here 
with so much simplicity and clearness, was sharp and 
long, but the issue was glorious. It was severe experi- 
ence ; but it furnished him with the most pleasing evi- 
dence of the kindness and love of God his Saviour to 
his own soul, and it effectually schooled him for the 
work of guiding and comforting others distressed by 
similar conflicts — a work in which, throughout his 
ministry, he was acknowledged to be eminently useful. 
All who are taught of the Spirit of Grod, are taught 
the same great truths pertaining to salvation ; but, as all 
do not have exactly the same exercises, the same degree 
of conviction and distress, or the same measure of faith 
and enjoyment, it is no small proof of the tender and 
faithful care of the chief Shepherd for his flock, when 
he raises up and sends forth those who are amply quali- 
fied to use the tongue of the learned upon the subject of 
Christian experience. 

Having thus solemnly given himself to Christ, and 



SO MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 

obtained a comfortable persuasion of the security of his 
eternal interests, it is natural to ask, "whether he long 
held fast the confidence and rejoicing of his hope, or 
■whether, through the devices of Satan, an unfavorable 
change occurred. It is not often that the joy felt im- 
mediately upon conversion, continues for any consider- 
able time unabated. The believer is engaged in a war- 
fare, in which, unless he watch and pray constantly, 
the adversary will get an advantage and involve him 
in new troubles. It is frequently the case, that he is 
not brought at once into a settled state of peace ; that 
upon some fresh and unexpected assault, or through 
the working of some corruption which he had supposed 
to be slain, he becomes again depressed w r ith doubts and 
fears, and walks for a season in darkness. But in this 
respect Mr. Livingston appears to have been pecu- 
liarly favored by his divine Master. " For some months," 
he says, " my consolations abounded ; and I felt a de- 
gree of that love which casteth out fear. Raised from 
the depths of despair, and brought out of darkness into 
light, I now enjoyed all that assurance of salvation and 
rapture of hope which a lively, direct, and appropriat- 
ing faith in my blessed Jesus produced. I realized my 
union with him ; I derived of his fullness, and walked 
in the light of the countenance of the God of my salva- 
tion." 

"Sin. appeared exceeding sinful. With a broken 
and contrite heart I sincerely repented of it; and I 
especially mourned when I looked unto Him whom I 
had pierced. 1 abhorred myself as a monster of ini- 
quity and ingratitude, while I fled for refuge to lay 
hold of the hope set before me. Willing and desirous 



HIS EAELY LIFE. 



81 



to be saved from my sins, and hungering and thirsting 
after righteousness, my Saviour became very precious 
to my soul, He was the Lord, my righteousness and 
strength, my way, my end, my life, my all in all. The 
word, Gal. 2 : 20, was realized and foremost in my 
exercises for some time. I believed, experienced, and 
repeatedly said, lam crucified with Christ : nevertheless 
I live ; yet not but Christ Uveih in me : and the life 
which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son 
of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I now 
knew that divine grace had reduced a prodigal to his 
right mind, and brought a wandering and unworthy 
child home to his father. With my whole heart, I 
earnestly and repeatedly devoted myself to him, in a 
covenant, which I was confident was in all things well- 
ordered and sure. I now had but one Master who had 
bought me with a price. To him, I exclusively be- 
longed, and in the strength of his grace I resolved, with 
self-denial and perseverance, to follow and serve him 
alone. 

" This opened to me sublime and affecting views. 
This broke the prevailing power of sin in my soul, and 
it has never had dominion over me since. This inspired 
me with supreme love to God and holiness ; and sug- 
gested ends and motives unknown to me before. Every 
thing appeared, and was in fact, then, new to me. 
With the change of my relative state, when upon re- 
ceiving Christ, I obtained the adoption; he changed 
also my internal state, and gave me a new heart, with 
the temper and affections of a child. (John 1 : 12, 13.) 
In the happy frame, which these exercises and the com- 
munications of the divine presence excited, I continued 



82 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



for some time with, inexpressible delight ; and was con- 
vinced it would be easy to suffer martyrdom, if the 
Lord should please to manifest himself to the soul, and 
say — lam your salvation. These views and comforts 
engaged my total attention, and I expected they would 
always remain, and even daily increase ; and notwith- 
standing a disappointment in that expectation, still the 
recollection and relish of those first exercises of faith, 
of hope, of love, of joy, and peace, have never been 
lost. In the darkest hours which have since succeeded, 
in the heaviest trials, and greatest discouragements, I 
have never gone to my blessed Saviour and God as to 
a stranger, but always have considered him as my cov- 
enant Head, my Lord, my Husband, and Portion, who 
has united me to himself, and from whom, I am assured, 
nothing shall be able to separate me. I know whom I 
have believed, and I am persuaded that He is able to 
keep, and will keep, that which I have committed unto 
him against that day. 

" The first alarm, respecting a change in my com- 
fortable frames, was occasioned by a sermon I one 
morning heard the celebrated Whitefield preach. His 
text was Psalm 40 : 1, 2, 3. In the introduction he 
said he had intended to preach upon another subject, 
but this passage was impressed with such power upon 
his mind, that he was constrained to take it ; and I be- 
lieve, said he, there is one now present for whom God 
designs this to he a word in season. The young convert, 
rejoicing in hope, and in a lively frame, expects he will 
always proceed, with swelling sails, before a propitious gale 
of consolations : but remember, said the great preacher, 
(and I thought he pointedly and solemnly addressed 



HIS EAELY LIFE. 



33 



me,) that at some period of your life you will come into a 
situation and exercises, which you will denominate with 
David, a horrible pit and miry clay ; there you will remain 
until your patience is severely tried. Yet be of good cour- 
age : the Lord will bring you out with triumphant songs 
of deliverance. He will set your feet upon a rock, and 
establish your goings. Your restoration will be equal to 
your first joys. Be of good cheer. Look unto Jesus. The 
victory is sure. From that hour, I considered this word 
intended for me, and expected its accomplishment. I 
knew not what it fully comprehended, but I understood 
it in part, and was persuaded that I should know the 
whole. And in the progress of my spiritual warfare, I 
have experienced it, although I still wait for its highest 
fulfillment. No word of Scripture has been more con- 
stantly, for many years, present to my mind, influen- 
tial to my heart, or oftener upon my lips in prayer, 
while patience is performing its perfect work." 

It is not known that he ever believed the declaration 
to be fully accomplished in his own experience ; but it 
had proved a word in season for him. The impression 
which it made upon his mind was deep and salutary. 
It put him upon his guard ; and was thus probably an 
important means in the hands of the Spirit, of preserv- 
ing him to the end of his course, from any very palpa- 
ble declension from his first love. 

The state of his health, for some time after he had 
retired from the office of Mr. Crannel, was quite alarm- 
ing to himself and to his friends. He grew weaker 
every day, a constant pain in his breast, with more or 
less fever, excited a distressing apprehension that he 
2* 



84 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



was consumptive : so unfavorable altogether were the 
symptoms of disease, that little hope could be enter- 
tained that his life would be prolonged even many 
months. But at length, in or near the spring of 1765, 
there were pleasing signs of his convalescence: the 
pain in his breast, though not wholly removed, was 
much less severe than it had been ; he was able to take 
daily some moderate exercise; and, with the divine 
blessing upon this and other means used, he gained 
strength fast, and was soon again enjoying a good share 
of health. 

About the same time, there was an occurrence which 
made an indelible impression upon his mind, as it 
showed a most signal interposition of Divine Provi- 
dence in his favor. It was truly a remarkable preser- 
vation from unseen but impending destruction ; and 
he must be blind, who can not read in it a striking ex- 
position of the proverb, A man's heart deviseth his way : 
but the Lord directeth his steps. A young friend of his, 
(a brother of the Eev. Elias Yan Bunschooten,) whose 
health, as well as his own, was in a feeble state, having 
concluded to try the effect of a voyage to one of the 
West-India Islands, proposed that he should accompany 
him ; and some circumstances concurring to render the 
proposal very agreeable at the moment, he did not 
hesitate to accept it. Nay, he was so delighted with 
the opportunity now presented of taking a trip of the 
kind, and so confident that he would derive great bene- 
fit from it, that he decided upon the matter without 
previously seeking direction of the Lord, a duty which, 
afterwards, he seldom omitted upon any occasion. It 
was understood that he would go ; he fully intended 



HIS EARLY LIFE. 



to go ; and, as it was expected that we would sail soon, 
his kind mother provided a number of articles, which 
she thought he would need at sea. After all the pre- 
parations were made for his departure, to the surprise 
of his friends, he suddenly gave up the voyage. This 
singular step, some no doubt will imagine, proceeded 
from timidity ; but it does not appear, from his own 
account of it, that he had beforehand apprehended any 
danger, or anticipated aught but pleasure and a resto- 
ration of his health. He could assign no reason for it, 
save that he had lost all desire to go ; he accordingly 
let his friend sail without him. 

When the voyage was nearly completed, two of the 
crew made an attempt one night to seize the vessel ; 
and, in the prosecution of their diabolical design, all on 
board, except a little boy, perished by their hands. 
After perpetrating the horrible deed, they gave them- 
selves up to intoxication, and in this state, while in 
sight of the Island of St. Thomas, it so happened, pro- 
videntially for their speedy detection, they ordered the 
boy to row them ashore. He did so ; and then, as 
soon as out of their power, he informed against them. 
A vigorous search was instantly made for the wretches. 
One fled to St. Eustatia, but was there seized and bro- 
ken upon the wheel. The other, whose name was 
Anderson, was taken in St. Thomas, sent back for trial 
to Xew-York, and here executed "upon an Island in 
the Bay, near the city, which, from that circumstance, 
has ever since been called, Anderson's or Gibbet Island:' 

Had Mr. L. accompanied his friend, speaking after 
the manner of men, he would never have returned ; 



36 



MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



and upon hearing of the melancholy event, he was 
much affected with the thought of his own wonderful 
deliverance from a tragical death. He saw the protect- 
ing hand of a good God ; he knew that the Almighty 
had wrought that change in his inclination, which was 
the means of saving his life ; he therefore blessed the 
Lord, who had thus seasonably interposed to redeem 
his life from destruction. It is a circumstance not 
altogether unworthy of notice, that the Great Being, 
who determines the bounds of our habitation, so ordered 
the place of his residence afterwards, that, for a great 
many years, u Anderson's or Gibbet Island," was fre- 
quently before his eyes as a memento of the singular 
mercy ; and never to the day of his death, did he for- 
get it, or relate it to his friends without suitable expres- 
sions of gratitude and praise. 

It has been said, that he commenced the study of 
law, with great ardor and untiring diligence, that he 
constantly read, and thought, and wrote, with a fixed 
and predominant regard to the honors of the world, for 
more than two years, or until, by his intense applica- 
tion, he was brought apparently upon the very verge of 
the grave. After his conversion, this profession, how- 
ever captivating once, was divested of all its charms. 
He not only had no relish for it, but even a strong aver- 
sion to it ; and finding the idea of making this the busi- 
ness of his future life, painful to him, though he said 
nothing immediately upon the subject, to any of his 
friends, he determined to turn his attention in another 
direction. What to pursue in its place, he had not yet 
decided ; and some little time elapsed before he was 



HIS EARLY LIFE. 



37 



relieved from the embarrassment, which, in the inter- 
esting state of his mind at this moment, was connected 
with a decision. He was led, at length, to think of 
devoting himself to the ministry of the Gospel; and " I 
began to feel," he says, "even greater ardor for the 
study of divinity, than I had before entertained for the 
law; yet here difficulties," he adds, 11 which, seemed 
insuperable, immediately occurred. My health was 
still feeble ; the pain in my breast was frequently 
severe : and I could scarcely hope that I should be 
even equal to the labors inseparable from the ministry 
of the Gospel." 

As the work he was now contemplating is the most 
momentous and excellent in which a mortal can en- 
gage, and one which no man, who has a just impression 
of its nature and consequences, will lightly think of 
undertaking ; the solicitude, humility, and pious zeal, 
with which he sought to know what the Lord would 
have him to do, ought to be fully exhibited. 

"But," he goes on to say, "this was only a second- 
ary objection : my principal difficulty arose from another 
source. As the servant of Christ, I did not dare to 
engage in any profession or service without being first 
convinced that it was agreeable to the will of my 
Divine Master ; nor could I form any determination 
until I had obtained his permission. The duties and 
office of the ministry of the Gospel especially, opened 
with such magnitude and high responsibility to my 
view, that I feared I was wholly unequal, and altogether 
unworthy of being employed in the sanctuary. I sup- 
posed it would be presumption in me to engage in this 
holy work ; and the words, Isa. 1 : 12. Who hath re- 



88 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 

quired this at your hand, to tread my courts, were awful 
and impressive. 

" Convinced of the propriety and duty of acknow- 
ledging the Lord in all my ways, and particularly in a 
step of such, importance, and believing, that according 
to his promise, he would direct my paths, I often 
prayed most fervently to obtain light and direction in 
this interesting object. Sometimes encouraged to hope 
that I might proceed, and again cast down and despond- 
ing, I resolved to set apart a day, with fasting and 
prayer, to pour out my heart before the Lord, and plead 
for his instruction. Upon this solemn occasion, after 
fervent supplications, reading the word, and serious 
meditation, I endeavored to arrange the subject; and 
the better to understand it, in all its bearings, I com- 
mitted to writing in one column, all the arguments in 
favor, and in another, all those against it. These I 
maturely compared and disinterestedly pondered. 
Especially, I endeavored most accurately to examine 
my motives and ascertain the end I proposed, if I ever 
should enter into the ministry. I found in this scrutiny, 
and was sure there was no deception, that I was solely 
prompted by a zeal to promote the glory of my Divine 
Eedeemer, by an ardent love for the souls of men, and 
a desire to bring sinners, by preaching the Gospel, to 
the obedience of faith. I was conscious that I did not 
" desire the office of a Bishop" to gratify pride, indo- 
lence, or ambition, nor to promote my own personal 
advantage and profit, for I knew it would be a sacrifice 
of my secular interests and prospects ; but that in sin- 
cerity, and before God, it was to labor in His Church ; 
it was to advance the cause of truth and holiness, and 



HIS EARLY LIFE, 



89 



in this service to express my gratitude for redeeming 
love." 

" But such was my fear of rushing inconsiderately 
and impiously into this solemn work, that I several 
times repeated these devotional exercises, and again set 
apart days for that purpose ; still under the impression 
of those awful words, Who hath required this at your 
hand) to tread ray courts f Is or did I dare to come to 
any conclusion, nor would I ever have commenced the 
study of theology, unless it had pleased the Lord to 
hear my poor prayers, and convince me it was consistent 
with his holy will, that I should devote myself to this 
arduous service. 

" I did not expect or desire any immediate revela- 
tion, nor did I pray for any extraordinary manifesta- 
tion. I only wished for a removal of my doubts and 
fears ; for a confirmation of my motives and desires, 
and, in this way, to obtain a convincing and comfort- 
able token of the divine approbation. Whenever I 
realized the voice of the Lord saying, Whom shall I send, 
and who wiU go for us f the reply of my soul was : Here 
am ij send me. Yet still I hesitated to conclude that 
he would send me, or expect he would honor me with 
his message. After some weeks spent in these exercises, 
the result was, that my doubts and fears were all en- 
tirely removed, and I began humbly to hope and be 
persuaded, that I not only might commence in the 
study, but actually must proceed. Every other door 
was shut against me, while a sincere desire for this 
work, from honest and sanctified principles, prevailed ; 
and I could not avoid considering all this as a divine 



40 



MEMOIE OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



response, as a gracious word of commission ; and he said, 
go. From that hour, I never doubted of my duty, but 
have had incontestable and continual proofs, that my 
Lord had called me to the- ministry, and would in 
mercy employ me in his vineyard. My only remain- 
ing burthen now was, to obtain the spirit of that sta- 
tion ; to be furnished with special talents ; to be in- 
structed in the truth ; and to be rendered faithful." 

When he thus relinquished a favorite pursuit which 
promised the most brilliant temporal advantages ; and, 
after much serious and severe self-examination ; after 
reading, and meditating, and fasting, and praying, 
again and again, with a view to obtain counsel of the 
Lord ; after carefully arranging and weighing the ar- 
guments on both sides, arrived at the full conviction 
that a necessity was laid upon him to preach the Gos- 
pel ; there can be no question that he was indeed called 
of God to become an ambassador of the Prince of Peace. 
And, it is scarce possible to image to one's self a more 
interesting object than a youth, in the nineteenth year 
of his age, shut up for hours together in a retired room, 
that no eye might see, and no ear hear him but God's, and 
there, upon his bended knees, with all humility and 
fervor of spirit, seeking to learn of Him, with whom is 
the residue of the Spirit, whether or not he shall go 
forward to proclaim the precious tidings of salvation to 
a dying world. On the other hand how impious, in 
the eyes of Christians, and how contemptible even in 
the view of the world, is the conduct of those, who, 
without giving any evidence of piety, assume the minis- 



HIS EARLY LIFTS. 



41 



terial office ! To authorize its assumption, the possession 
of grace, a certain degree of intellectual cultivation, an 
acquaintance with the system of revealed truth, and the 
approbation of the Church duly expressed, are indis- 
pensable ; but, in addition to these things, it is neces- 
sary that there be such a drawing of- his heart to the 
work, for the glory of Grod and the salvation of souls, 
and such a concurrence of outward providences, as will 
show satisfactorily to the individual proposing to un- 
dertake it, the approbation of God. There are many 
great and good men in the Church, in whose conver- 
sion and call to the ministry, as far as known, nothing 
very striking can be discovered ; yet, it is a fact, that, 
when a person is, in a manner somewhat extraordinary, 
brought to a knowledge of the truth, is suddenly di- 
verted from a business which he had designed to pursue, 
and is constrained, contrary to antecedent views and 
calculations, to devote himself to the ministry of the 
Gospel, he is subsequently distinguished by a preemi- 
nent degree of the divine blessing upon his labors. 
This appears to be an ordinary procedure of Provi- 
dence ; and the sequel will show, that the Lord was 
preparing Mr. Livingston for a great work, and made 
him, through a long life, a burning and shining light 
in the Church. 

The important question being now solved to the 
satisfaction of his own mind, he deemed it proper ai 
once to acquaint his father with the change that had 
taken place in his views. For reasons, which it is un- 
necessary to relate, he was apprehensive that he would 
not readily be permitted to quit the study of law ; but 



42 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



the result of tlie disclosure of his wishes was very dif- 
ferent from what he had anticipated, and thrilled his 
heart with delight. His father promptly and cheerfully 
consented to his commencing the study of theology ; 
and, for his encouragement, added a promise of such 
pecuniary assistance as he might need in the prosecu- 
tion of the good design. 



THE STATE OF THE CHURCH. 



43 



CHAPTER III. 

THE STATE OF THE CHURCH ABOUT THE YEAR 1765. 

The Reformed Protestant Dutch Church, was at this 
time in an unhappy and critical state. In order pro- 
perly to set forth Mr. Livingston's situation, and the 
disinterested and useful offices which he afterwards 
rendered to the Church, it is necessary to trace the 
difficulties which existed back to their origin. 

Nova Belgia, or Xew-Xetherland, as the part of 
America settled or claimed by the Hollanders, was 
originally called, comprehended a large extent of terri- 
tory. But the earliest settlements of any consequence 
were made at the head of navigation on the Hudson 
river, and on the south-west point of the island of Man- 
hattan. For the first few years after Hudson's dis- 
covery, in 1609, the Dutch occupants were chiefly 
traders. It was not until after the incorporation of the 
Dutch TTest-India Company, in 1621, that steps were 
taken to send out agricultural colonists. In the spring 
of 1623, the work of colonization was effectively begun, 
and families were soon settled at Manhattan, Fort 
Orange, and the " TTaal-bogt," near Brooklyn. In 
1626, Manhattan Island was purchased from the sav- 
ages for sixty guilders, (about twenty-four dollars.) and 
Fort Amsterdam was begun on the site now covered 



44 MEMOIR OF JOHN" HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



by the houses known as " Bowling Kow," near the 
Battery. The Fort was completed in 1628, at which 
time the population of Manhattan amounted to two 
hundred and seventy. 

Although the Dutch colonists were allured to the 
New World chiefly by secular considerations, they did 
not forget the churches and the schools with which 
they had been familiar in the fatherland. The estab- 
lished Calvinistic religion of Holland was naturally 
transplanted to New-Netherland, and the service of the 
Eeformed Dutch Church was formally celebrated the 
same year that Manhattan was purchased. A spacious 
room was prepared as a church in the story above the 
first horse-mill erected on the Island, and, in the ab- 
sence of a regular clergyman, divine worship was con- 
ducted by Jan Huyck and Sebastian Krol, the two 
Krank-besoeckers, or " Consolers of the Sick." In the 
Eeformed Dutch Church, it is the duty of these officers 
to assist the ministers in certain services, particularly 
in reading the creed and the commandments from the 
baptistery under the pulpit. This custom, which still 
prevails in Holland, was kept up until recently in most 
of the Dutch churches here. 

Among the manuscripts of Dr. Livingston, there is 
one containing a few observations upon the Dutch 

Church, in which he says: " Documents of a private 

private nature render it certain that a considerable 
church was organized in that city, as early as 1619." 
In another, he affirms, that a document "is still extant, 
containing the names of members, in full communion, 
of the Church of New- York, dated 1622." 

The 27th article of the charter of 4 'freedoms and ex- 



THE STATE OF THE CHURCH. 



45 



emptions granted to the colonists of jSTew-Xetherland," 
by the West-India Company, passed on the 7th day of 
June, 1629, enacted, "that the patroons and colonists 
shall in particular and in the speediest manner, en- 
deavor to find out ways and means whereby they may 
support a minister and a schoolmaster, that thus the 
service of Grod and zeal for religion may not grow cool 
and be neglected among them ; and that they do for 
the first procure a comforter for the sick." 

In the spring of 1633, the Rev: Everardus Bogar- 
dus, the first clergyman in ISTew-uSTetherland, came out 
from Holland, accompanied by Ada^i Boelaxdsex, a 
schoolmaster. The loft over the mill, in which divine 
service had been performed since 1626, was now re- 
placed by a plain wooden building, the first church edi- 
fice in New- York, situated on the East Eiver, in what is 
now Broad street, between Pearl and Bridge streets. 
Hard by, a parsonage and a stable were built, for the 
use of the "Domine," as the clergyman in Holland 
was familiarly called. This title, which crossed the 
Atlantic with Bogardus, has survived to the present 
day among the descendants of the first Dutch settlers in 
this State. 

From this period the Church service was regularly 
maintained, and the sacraments duly administered by 
Dutch clergymen. In 1639, a record of baptisms was 
commenced, which has been continued unbroken down 
to the present day. 

The precise time when a church was formed at 
Albany, or who was the first minister there, can not 
now be ascertained ; but it scarcely admits of a ques- 
tion that the inhabitants of that place, almost from the 



46 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 

moment of its occupancy, enjoyed the regular minis- 
trations of the Gospel. In the manuscript of Dr. Liv- 
ingston before referred to, it is said in reference to the 
Albany settlement: "It is very certain that they had 
ministers there as early as, if not before, any were in 
New- York." Prior to the surrender of the colony to 
Great Britain, in 1664, churches were established in 
various other parts of New-Netherland, such as Flat- 
bush, New-Utrecht, Flatlands (then New Amersfort) 
on Long Island, Bsopus in the interior, and Bergen in 
New- Jersey. Within a few years after that surrender, 
a church was formed in Schenectady, one on Staten 
Island, three or four in different towns on the Hudson, 
and several in New-Jersey. The Eev. Mr. Bogardus 
was succeeded in the pastoral charge of the congrega- 
tion on Manhattan Island, in 1647, by the Eev. Johan- 
nes Backerus, who in 1649 returned to Holland and 
was succeeded by the Eev. Johannes Megapolensis, 
to whom the Eev. Samuel Drisius was added as a col- 
league in 1652, The subsequent ministers, during the 
remainder of the century, were the Eev. Samuel Mega- 
polensis, Wilheimus Van Nieuwenhuysen, Henricus 
Solyns and Gualterus Dubois, who was settled in the 
year 1699.' 

These facts show that the original colonists were, in 
general, men of great moral worth, who did not, upon 
being transferred to a new country, and far removed 
from the notice of pious friends, cast off the fear of 
God and abandon themselves to licentious habits of life. 
Sensible of the importance of an early, public obser- 
vance of the worship of God, and cherishing a high re- 
gard for the doctrines of the Eeformation, as they had 



THE STATE OF THE CHURCH. 



47 



been taught them in Holland, they at once so consti- 
tuted themselves in a religious, as well as civil respect, 
as was best calculated to preserve them from degener- 
acy, and to promote both their temporal and spiritual 
welfare. It was, in their estimation, a measure of no 
little consequence to the best interests of the colony, to 
settle among them, as soon as possible, pious and faith- 
ful ministers of the Gospel, who should instruct them 
and their children in divine things, and maintain among 
them all the ordinances which appertain to the service 
of God. And whether accompanied or not in their 
emigration by those of their own choice, subsequent 
circumstances soon rendered it necessary for them to 
depend altogether for a supply of such men, upon the 
choice of others. In these circumstances, as they had 
no connection with any particular classis in the mother 
country, they very naturally availed themselves of 
their connection with the "\Yest-India Company, whose 
influence was likely to obtain for them suitable pastors, 
or at least to secure them against impositions ; and this 
Company, the greater part of whose Directors resided 
in Amsterdam, as naturally, whenever applications for 
clerical supplies were received from the colony, availed 
itself of the advice and assistance of the classis of that 
city. This way of relieving the exigencies t of the 
churches here, the best, if not the only one practicable 
at the time, ultimately reduced them to a state of eccle- 
siastical vassalage, of no short duration, and fraught 
with the most serious evils. Uniformly receiving their 
ministers from the Classis of Amsterdam, these church- 
es, though not at first formally connected with it, were 
very easily brought to consider themselves subject to 



48 



MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



its authority. Gratitude for services rendered by the 
Classis, independent of any influence on the part of 
their ministers to this end, would dispose them respect- 
fully to submit to its oversight and control ; and the 
result was, in the lapse of time, that, either from grati- 
tude or ministerial influence, or both combined, to- 
gether with the necessities of their situation, submission 
was yielded as a matter of solemn duty. That it was 
the interest of the ministers to inculcate and endeavor 
to secure such submission, must be obvious ; but it 
seems strange, that the Classis encouraged it after a 
number had been sent over, sufficient of themselves 
with their several congregations to be formed into a 
classis. It seems strange, that the Classis of Amster- 
dam were willing to retain any responsibility in rela- 
tion to men, whose moral and ministerial conduct they 
could not inspect, or that they did not take measures, 
as soon as they were warranted by circumstances, with 
the Synod of North-Holland, to have a Colonial Classis 
constituted. The formation of such a Classis, subor- 
dinate to the Synod, would certainly have relieved 
them of a great deal of trouble, and might, in reason, 
have been judged necessary to the peace and welfare 
of the colonial churches. And it seems yet more 
strange, that these churches, suffering as they did, 
many inconveniences from their servile dependence 
upon a foreign judicatory, were not prompted, at a very 
early day, to apply for a local organization with class- 
ical powers. But this expedient was not thought of, 
and for more than a century they continued to receive 
their supplies from the Classis of Amsterdam, to refer 
their controversies to it for decision, and implicitly to 



THE STATE OF THE CHURCH. 



49 



obey all its commands. And that Classis, having long 
had the exclusive management of these foreign con- 
cerns, with the approbation or tacit consent of the 
other judicatories in the Netherlands, or without en- 
countering any interference, was at last supposed to 
possess a sort of paramount authority. It acquired un- 
limited power over its American charge. It was in- 
vested with an imaginary infallibility, to which almost 
the same respect was paid that Eoman Catholics are 
wont to show to his Holiness the Pope, The opinion 
obtained with some, that it was the only legitimate 
source of ministerial authority, that no ordination was 
valid, except it had been performed or approved by 
the Classis of Amsterdam. 

An instance of this kind of extravagance occurred in 
Albany, in 1675. It is thus related by Smith, in his 
History of New- York : "In the year 1675, Nicholas 
Eenslaer, a Dutch clergyman, arrived here. He claimed 
the manor of Eenslaer "Wyck, and was recommended (by 
the Duke of York) to Sir Edmond Andross, for a living 
in one of the churches at New-York or Albany, proba- 
bly to serve the Popish cause. N iewenhyt, minister of 
the Church at Albany, disputed his right to administer 
the sacraments, because he had received an Episcopal ordi- 
nation, and ivas not approved by the Classis of Amster- 
dam, to which the Dutch churches here hold them- 
selves subordinate." The controversy excited a good 
deal of interest at the time, and in the end was referred 
to the determination of the Consistory of the Dutch 
Church at Albany. Opposition to the settlement of 
Eenslaer, under the suspicions entertained of his cha- 
racter and designs, was perfectly justifiable upon the 
3 



50 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



ground of those suspicions, but not upon that of the 
supposed invalidity of his ordination. This, if not 
thought to be derived from quite so good a source as 
the Olassis of Amsterdam — and such an opinion would 
probably find some advocates at the present day — pro- 
vided he showed a willingness to adopt the standards 
of the Church, and to put himself under its government, 
could not fairly be viewed as barring his reception ; 
much less could it be viewed as in itself wholly ineffi- 
cacious, or conferring no right to administer sealing 
ordinances. The claim, however, which Niewenhyt, 
in his zeal, set up in favor of the exclusive validity of 
Holland ordination, was not more chimerical and ab- 
surd than that which in modern times has been ad- 
vanced, and somewhat strenuously maintained, in favor 
of the exclusive validity of Episcopal ordination ; and 
though urged in order to defeat a suspected nefarious 
design, the fact that it was urged, clearly evinces the 
influence which it was believed the argument would 
have ; and hence, may be seen the ascendency then of 
the Olassis of Amsterdam, in the Dutch churches in 
this country. This ascendency continued unimpaired, 
and without even the semblance of opposition, until the 
year 1737, when, for the first time, an attempt was 
made to form a local convention, to have some general 
superintendence of ecclesiastical concerns. A few min- 
isters* met in the city of New- York, and agreed upon 
the plan of a Ooetus, or an assembly of ministers and 

* The Rev. G-. Dubois, of the city of New-York ; the Rev. G-. Haeg- 
hoort, of Second River ; the Rev. B. Freeman, of Long Island ; the Rev. 
C. Van Santvoort, of Staten Island; and the Rev. A. Curtenius, of 
Hackensack. 



THE STATE OF THE CHURCH. 



51 



elders, to be subordinate to the Classis of Amster- 
dam. 

The plan Tras submitted to the consideration of the 
churches ; and the following year, at a meeting of 
ministers and elders" held in the same city, it was 
formally approved. A copy of it was at once for- 
warded to Holland, for the approbation of the Classis. 
But though perfectly inoffensive in all its features, and 
not intended to weaken, in the least, the authority of 
the Classis, but merely to afford the brethren opportu- 
nities of giving and receiving advice, in cases of diffi- 
culty, and of cultivating a good understanding with 
each other, it seems to have been received with some 
little presentiment of its future important results. 
"Whether such was the case or not, no answer was re- 
turned to the communication for the space of eight or 
nine years. When the answer came, however, it was 
a gratifying one to the friends of the plan ; and accord- 
ingly, in the fall of 1747, the Coetus was constituted. 

The body now formed, it will be recollected, had no 
power of ordination. Ordination was indeed some- 
times performed here, but not independently of the 

* Present — The Rev. Mr. Dubois, with two elders, Anthony Rutgers 
and Abraham Lefferts ; the Rev. Mr. Freeman, with two elders, Peter 
Xevius and Dirk Brinkerhoof; the Rev. Mr. Van Santvoort, with one 
elder, G-oosen Adriance ; the Rev. Mr. Haeghoorfc, with one elder, F. 
Van Dyck; the Rev. Mr. Curtenius, with one elder, Zabriskie; the 
Rev. R. Erickson of Xauwesink, with one elder, J. Zutveen ; the Rev. 
J. Bohm, of Philadelphia, with one elder, Snyder ; the Rev. Mr. Schuy- 
ler, of Schoharie, with one elder, Spies; and the Rev. T. J. Frelino- 
iiuysex, of Raritan, (see Appendix B,) with an elder, H. Fisher. The 
lames of the persons constituting this meeting are taken from an article 
by the Rev. Dr. T. Romeyn,) in the Christian's Magazine 



52 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENKY LIVINGSTON. 

Olassis of Amsterdam, their permission to perform it, 
in any ease, being requisite. The Coetus was not com- 
petent to proceed, upon its own motion, to any act of 
the kind ; and for it to have done so, would have been 
considered a usurpation of power, or high rebellion 
against the authority of the Mother Church. The Coe- 
tus, in fact, possessed none of the rights or powers 
which essentially belong to a classis ; and it was not 
long, therefore, before many who looked with the 
deepest solicitude at the wants of the Church, and faith- 
fully consulted her best interests, became convinced of 
the necessity of having a more efficient judicatory. 
This conviction grew stronger daily, and, in the end, 
induced a proposition to form a regular classis. The 
proposition was first made in Coetus, in 1753. It gave 
rise naturally to considerable discussion, but was ap- 
proved ; and the next year due measures were taken to 
ascertain the sense of the different churches upon the 
subject. 

The historian, whose words have been more than 
once cited, who wrote about the time of these occur- 
rences, and upon the spot, speaking of the Low Dutch 
congregations, says : " With respect to government, 
they are, in principle, Presbyterians, but yet hold them- 
selves in subordination to the Classis of Amsterdam, 
who sometimes permit, and at other times refuse them 
the power of ordination. Some of their ministers con- 
sider such a subjection as anti-constitutional ; and hence, 
in several of their late annual conventions, at New- 
York, called the Coetus, some debates have arisen 
among them, the majority being inclined to erect a 
classis, or ecclesiastical judicatory, here, for the gov- 



THE STATE OF THE CHURCH, 



53 



eminent of their churches. Those of their ministers, 
who are natives of Europe, are, in general, averse to 
the project. The expense attending the ordination of 
their candidates in Holland, and the reference of their 
disputes to the Olassis of Amsterdam, is very consider- 
able ; and with what consequences the interruption of 
their correspondence with the European Dutch would 
be attended, in case of a war, well deserves their con- 
sideration." 

Reasons, other than those enumerated by this au- 
thor, had their influence in favor of the establishment 
of an independent classis. It was not a little mortify- 
ing to several friends of the Church, that congregations 
should still be compelled to send to Holland for minis- 
ters, when the few who had been ordained here were 
found to be quite as acceptable and useful, as their Eu- 
ropean brethren, and when others, of undoubted piety 
and sufficient talents, stood ready to become candidates 
for the ministry, as soon as the way should be fairly 
opened to a domestic ordination. Besides, the foreign 
Olassis, not knowing exactly the character and circum- 
stances of every vacancy, was not always the most 
happy in the selection of a supply, nor, indeed, always 
the most promptly attentive to a request for one. It 
often happened that after the transmission of a call a 
vacancy remained for years without the regular minis- 
trations of the Gospel. The proposal now under con- 
sideration, was, therefore, very popular in many parts 
of the Church. The idea of throwing off a yoke, which 
both they and their fathers had long been unable to 
bear, and of governing themselves, was no sooner sug- 
gested than it suddenly spread, and arrayed in the sup- 



54 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



port of itself a number of congregations and of minis- 
ters, both European and native, who cherished a proper 
sense of their own rights, and a disposition to promote, 
at all hazards, the welfare of the Church. 

The measures pursued to carry this new plan into 
operation, and the patronage it received, alarmed the 
adherents of the Olassis of Amsterdam, and they speedi- 
ly commenced a course of the most determined and 
active opposition. 

They met first in 1755 ; and, to be distinguished from 
the friends of an independent Classis, who retained the 
old name of Ccetus, they called themselves Confer- 
ence.^ 

In point of numerical strength, the parties were about 
equal to each other : in other respects, there was a 
marked difference between them, the former excelling 
in 11 practical preaching, zeal, and industry," the latter 
having the greatest share of learning. The two bodies, 
now completely organized and prepared for war, took 
their stand against each other, with evidences of reso- 
lution and feeling, which foreboded a long, obstinate, 
and dreadful conflict; and such, in fact, it proved. 
" The peace" (we quote from the Christian 's Magazine) 
" of the churches was destroyed. Not only neighboring 
ministers and congregations were at variance ; but, in 
many places, the same congregation was divided ; and 
in those instances in which the numbers, or the influ- 
ential characters on different sides, were nearly equal, 
the consequences became very deplorable. Houses of 

* The ministers of this party were the Rev. Messrs. Haeghoort, Cur- 
tenius, Ritzema, De Ronde, Van Der Linde, Schuyler, Van Sinderin, 
Rubel, Freyenmoet, Kock, Kern, and Rysdyck. 



THE STATE OF THE CHURCH. 



55 



worship were locked by one part of the congregation 
against the other. Tumults on the Lord's day, at the 
doors of the churches, were frequent. Quarrels respect- 
ing the services, and the contending claims of different 
ministers and people, often took place. Preachers were 
sometimes assaulted in the pulpits, and public worship 
either disturbed or terminated by violence. In these 
attacks the Conferentie party were considered as the 
most vehement and outrageous. But, on both sides, a 
furious and intemperate zeal prompted many to excesses 
which were a disgrace to the Christian name, and 
threatened to bring into contempt that cause which 
both professed to be desirous of supporting." 

For about fifteen years, this unhappy controversy 
was maintained with all the virulence of party spirit, 
producing, in many places, the most disastrous effects. 
" The more moderate and prudent members of both 
parties" (to quote again from the Christian's Magazine) 
4 4 were greatly grieved to find matters carried to such 
extremes. They perceived the mischief which this vio- 
lence was daily producing, and foresaw the ruin to their 
Church which was impending ; but were at a loss for 
an adequate remedy. To allay the bitterness of preju- 
dices, which had been cherished for many years, and 
had become deeply inveterate ; to heal a breach which 
was now so wide, and was daily growing wider and 
more unmanageable, required a combination of con- 
curring causes, which were not easily produced nor 
brought into action. Each party tenaciously held its 
own principles, and refused to yield or compromise. 
No umpire could be found who was competent to de- 
cide, or who could expect obedience to his decision. 



56 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



The separation appeared to be without remedy ; hope 
was expiring ; and many valuable members, who ab- 
horred discord, and could no longer sustain the evils 
which it produced, now left the Church and joined 
other denominations." 

Such was the distracted and perilous state of the 
Dutch Church, under the baneful influence of this dis- 
pute, at the time when Mr. Livingston, after much se- 
rious deliberation, and earnest prayer to God for direc- 
tion, believed it was his duty to commence the study 
of theology. 

And the reader is requested to bear in memory, the 
alienation, bitterness, and open violence, now so preva- 
lent; the ruin, the utter extinction of the Church, 
which it was feared would inevitably follow, ere long, 
as the effect of this unholy strife ; and he will see, in the 
course of the ensuing narrative, how wisely and won- 
derfully after the lapse of nearly a century, God, in his 
providence, recompensed the Christian sympathies and 
attentions of the Church of Holland towards the pious 
John Livingston of Ancrum, whom, when an exile, it 
received and cherished, by rendering a descendant of his 
an invaluable blessing to a portion of the same Church 
when tossed with tempest, and apparently upon the 
brink of destruction. And, as it is likely that this por- 
tion of the Church, though in a distant country, com- 
prehended within its pale some of the lineal descend- 
ants of the particular Dutch friends of that persecuted 
and holy man, it will not be unreasonable to imagine, 
that in return for the friendship shown him, such des- 
cendants were in some way personally benefited, 
through the honored instrumentality of his descendant. 



THE STATE OF THE CHURCH. OY 

Bread cast upon the waters shall be found, after many 
days. A cup of cold water given to one because he belongs 
to Christ, shall not lose its reward. 

But there "was another event of the clay, which, as 
being connected with much that will appear in a sub- 
sequent chapter, and forming a signal epoch in the 
annals of the Church, deserves to be brought distinctly 
under the notice of the reader. This was the introduc- 
tion of the English language in the service of the sanc- 
tuary. Until 1664, while the colony was under the 
Dutch government, the Dutch language was, of course, 
the only one in general use ; but long after it was in 
the possession of Great Britain, as the Dutch inhabit- 
ants were by far the most numerous, their language 
still continued to prevail. They used it in their schools, 
in their public worship, in transacting their ordinary 
business ; and, ill fact, for more than a century, when 
the English was quite familiar to them, such was their 
attachment to their mother tongue, that they spoke it 
habitually in their families. But, notwithstanding 
their pains to preserve it, by the combined influence of 
many agents and circumstances, it began at length to 
decline, and, at last, went into entire disuse. The 
causes of this decline, and of the final predominance of 
the English language in the province, can be easily 
traced. 

" As the greatest part of this province consisted of 
Dutch inhabitants," says Judge Smith, " all our Gov- 
ernors thought it good policy to encourage English 
preachers and schoolmasters in the colony. JSTo man 
could be more bent upon such a project than Fletcher, 
a bigot to the Episcopal form of Church Government. 

3* 



58 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 

He accordingly recommended this matter to the Assem 
bly, on his first arrival, as well as at their present 
meeting. The House, from their attachment to the 
Dutch language, and the model of the Church of Hol- 
land, secured by one of the articles of surrender, were 
entirely disinclined to the scheme, which occasioned a 
warm rebuke from the Governor in his speech at the 
close of the session." At the next meeting of the 
Assembly, in September, 1693, a bill vjas passed in 
compliance with his wishes, 11 for settling a ministry, and 
was sent up to the Governor and Council, who imme- 
diately returned it with an amendment, to vest his ex- 
cellency with an episcopal power of inducting every 
incumbent, adding to that part of the bill, near the 
end, which gave the right of presentation to the people, 
these words, and presented to the Governor to be approv- 
ed and collated. The House declined to consent to the 
addition, and immediately returned the bill, praying- - 
that it may pass without the amendment, having in the 
drawing of the bill had a due regard to that pious intent 
of settling a ministry ', for the benefit of the people " 

According to this act, a certain number of vestry- 
men and church-wardens must be annually elected 
in the city and county of New- York, and in the coun- 
ties of "West-Chester, Queen's, and Eichmond, to 
choose u a good and sufficient Protestant minister" 
;for each district ; and, for the support of the minister 
so chosen, they were authorized to levy upon each dis- 
trict a certain sum, to be paid by the inhabitants, o f all 
denominations. The act itself made no invidious dis- 
tinction between ministers of different denominations ; 
but it was interpreted as allowing of the choice only of 



THE STATE OF THE CHURCH. 



59 



those of the Episcopal Church. A construction so dis- 
ingenuous and unwarrantable, naturally provoked 
much dissatisfaction in the community ; and in April, 
1695, a petition having been presented upon the sub- 
je :t 7 the Assembly declared it to be their opinion, " that 
the vestry-men and church-wardens have power to call 
a dissenting Protestant minister, and that he is to be 
paid and maintained as the act directs. The intent of 
this petition,'' adds the historian, " was to refute an 
opinion which prevailed, that the late ministry act was 
made for the sole benefit of Episcopal clergymen."* 
The popular discontent was not quieted, however, by 
this manoeuvre ; it was a mere piece of finesse ; for, 
whatever was the power of vestry -men and church- 
wardens in the matter, under their auspices the opera- 
tion of the law was sure to be what it had been, and 
what, no doubt, the crafty Governor intended it should 
be — solely in favor of such clergymen ; and thus the Epis- 
copal Church was established and supported for near a 
century, in the counties abovementioned. Before this 
law was enacted, the Dutch Church was by far the 
most distinguished of any in the colony, alike in num- 
bers, in wealth, and in respectability. But as soon as 
the Episcopal Church was made so prominently an ob- 
ject of government favor, the Dutch lost some sup- 
porters, as a natural consequence of the inducements 
then held out to defection. 

With this concurred several other circumstances to 
give a decided prominence to the use of the English 
language. It was employed in the business of the gov- 
ernment and of the civil courts ; English families were 



* See Smith's Hist., pages 137-143, and Chris. Mag. 



60 



MKVOIU OF JOHN JIEXRY LI VI XOSTON. 



continually multiplying ; English schools were estab- 
lished ; the tnulci with English merchants increased; 
a friendly intercourse with the adjacent English pro- 
vinces was maintained; intermarriages witt the Eng- 
lish inhabitants were not infrequent. Hence it soon 
became fashionable and even necessary to cultivate an 
acquaintance with this tongue, and it is not improba- 
ble that a view to this object led many at first to attend 
the Episcopal Church, who afterwards became fully 
identified with that Church. After the lapse of some 
years, the predominance of the English became so 
marked that many of the young people, particularly in 
the city of New- York, who had grown up in the con- 
stant use of it, could no longer sit with profit under 
Dutch preaching, and, therefore, desired that the former 
might be adopteel in the public worship of God. Un- 
willing to leave the Church of their fathers, the Church 
in which they had been baptized, and to which they 
felt much attached, they ventured to urge the propriety 
and necessity of a substitution of the English for the 
Dutch language. 

This request was very natural and proper. " The 
Dutch congregation," to use the words of Smith, a con- 
temporary historian, 11 is more numerous than any other, 
but as the language becomes disused, it is much dimin- 
ished ; and, unless they change their worship into the 
Idnglish tongue, must seen suffer a total dissipation." 
Some respectable families had already left it on account 
of the language, and united with other churches: but 
still so infatuated were many, especially of the aged 
part of the Church, with the notion that its very exist- 
ence depended upon the continuance of the language, 



THE STATE OF THE CHURCH. 



61 



that the request now made was received with indigna- 
tion, and resisted to the utmost. They feared that the 
proposed suppression of the language, if effected, would 
necessarily involve, in time, the loss of the doctrines, 
the mode of worship, the government, the very name 
of the Church ; and there is reason to believe that the 
opposition to it was fomented by the interference of the 
Dutch ministers, who, as they could not officiate in the 
English language, were not a little uneasy at the prospect 
of its introduction. The opposition assumed, at length, a 
malignant and violent aspect, which induced more of the 
congregation that had no relish for scenes of animosity 
and discord, to go over to other Christian societies ; and 
at this important juncture, when it was evident that 
something must be done to gratify the friends of a 
change, and also, if possible, to terminate the unhappy 
dispute, or the congregation " suffer a total dissipation,'' 
the consistory resolved to call a minister to preach in 
the English language. 

This was a decisive measure, one which teemed with 
the most momentous consequences to the future welfare 
of the Church, but which, though it had to encounter a 
warm and determined hostility, was agreed upon with 
singular moderation and prudence. The Consistory 
had been accused of unfriendliness to the Dutch Church, 
in meditating such a measure, or in showing any dis- 
position to favor the views of the English party ; and, 
as they knew that there were English Churches in 
some cities of the United Netherlands, in connection 
with the national Established Church, they, to evince 
their attachment to the Church, and by this means to 
restore peace, resolved, not merely to call a minister to 



62 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON". 

preach, in the English language, but to call one from 
Holland, through the medium of the Classis of Am- 
sterdam. Accordingly they prepared a blank call, and 
inclosed it in a letter to the Classis, requesting that the 
call might be properly filled up, and put into the hands 
of the individual whom that body should deem quali- 
fied for the station. Upon the receipt of this letter, 
the Classis very promptly complied with the request 
it contained, and sent the call to Mr, Archibald Laidlie, 
then a minister of the English Church, at Vlissingen, 
(or Flushing,) in Zealand, and a member of the Classis 
of Walcheren. A more judicious and happy selection 
could not have been made ; and it was due to the special 
guidance of the Great Head of the Church, as the event 
proved. 

Mr. Laidlie was a native of Scotland, (born in 1727,) 
and received his education in the University of Edin- 
burgh. In 1759, he settled at Flushing ; and, during 
his ministry in the church of that place, which con- 
tinued a little over four years, he was highly esteemed 
for his enlightened and active zeal in the service of his 
Master, for his extensive attainments in theology and 
general literature, and for his warm attachment to all 
the doctrines of grace. He received and accepted the 
call from New- York, in November, 1763 ; and arrived 
at that city the latter part of the March following. A 
fortnight after his arrival, April 15, 1764, having been 
duly recognized as one of the ministers of the Dutch 
Church, he preached his first sermon — the first ever 
delivered in the English language in the Dutch church 
— to a very crowded and devoutly attentive auditory. 
The text was 2 Cor. 5 : 11 — Knowing the terror of the 



THE STATE OF THE CHUKCH. 



63 



Lord, v:e persuade men. The wishes of a large majority 
of the congregation were now accomplished. God, in 
mercy, had heard their prayers, and granted them 
English preaching ; and, what rendered the boon pe- 
culiarly gratifying, there was good evidence that the 
preacher who had been sent to them was truly a man 
after God's own heart. It was, therefore, a season of 
thanksgiving and praise in their habitations, long 
gratefully remembered. It has been said, and the 
anecdote shows the warm and kindly feelings with 
which the ministrations of this eminent servant of 
Christ were regarded, that some pious aged persons 
gathered around him at the close of a prayer-meeting 
one evening, when he had been fervently addressing 
the Throne of Grace, and said to him : "Ah ! Dominie, 
we offered up many an earnest prayer in Dutch, for 
your coming among us ; and truly the Lord has heard 
us in English, and has sent you to us." 

The venerable subject of this Memoir, in one of his 
private papers, thus speaks of Mr. Laidlie: "He was 
a very acceptable preacher; bold and authoritative, 
commanding respect, fear, and love. The wicked 
trembled when he announced the terrors of the Lord, 
while the lambs of the flock were nourished and com- 
forted, when he displayed the grace, care, and faithful- 
ness of their divine and good Shepherd. He was 
much delighted with, and attached to, the Church Cat- 
echism; he had studied it with great diligence, and 
prepared excellent lectures upon every section of that 
precious standard of evangelical truths. By this study 
he became a learned and sound divine, and recom- 
mended himself greatly to the Church. In his labors, 

i 



64 MEMOIB OF JOHN HENEY LIVINGSTON. 



preaching, catechising, and visiting the congregation, 
he was indefatigable. He was the first who was called 
expressly to preach English in the Dutch Church in 
America. A revival of religion then commenced; 
the Church prospered, and the blessing of the Lord 
was abundantly experienced under his ministry." The 
writer has often heard an aged saint, who recurred 
with evident satisfaction to the hours she had spent 
under the preaching or catechetical instructions of this 
man of God, tell of the revival here alluded to ; and, 
from her representation, it must have been a powerful 
and glorious work of the Spirit. 

From traditionary and other accounts, it appears that 
Dr. Laidlie (now made a Doctor in Divinity by the 
college at Princeton) was a man not only of ardent 
piety and remarkable public talents, but also of more 
than common discernment and prudence ; possessing 
precisely those qualities, the exercise of which, in his 
difficult situation, was indispensably necessary to the 
enjoyment of much comfort, or to extensive usefulness. 
Coming into the Church at a time when the collision of 
opinions and interests between the two great parties, 
the Coetus and Conferentie, was at its height ; and. con- 
nected with a congregation, which was in a state of 
very excited dissension, in consequence of his settle- 
ment among them as an English preacher, it behooved 
him to look well to his goings ; and he did so look to 
them. He was plain and affectionate in all his deport- 
ment ; he complied with the existing practice of the 
Church in the most trivial things ; he treated with the 
utmost respect the patrons of the Dutch language ; he 
studied peace ; and made.it evident to all, in his public 



THE STATE OF THE CHUECH. 



65 



ministrations and private conversation, that his predo- 
minant desire was to win souls to Christ. It was his 
happiness, therefore, to enjoy in a very high degree, 
the esteem and confidence of the congregation which 
he served, and of the Christian community at large. 
But beloved as was Dr. Laicllie, and successful as had 
been his ministry in the city from the moment of its 
commencement, there still remained those whom a 
blind and invincible attachment to the Dutch language 
incited to a course of conduct exceedingly blame- 
worthy in itself, and, in no small degree, vexatious to 
the Church. They were not to be reconciled to the 
innovation ; nay, seemingly the more chagrined, the 
more popular it appeared to be, they were incessant in 
their efforts to obtain such a preponderance in the 
government of the Church, or such a triumph over the 
Consistory in a civil suit, which had been instituted 
against that body for a sirpposed illegal act, as would 
give them the power of exploding it. 

The nature of the suit alluded to, which, though 
commenced nearly two years before, was yet undecided, 
and which must be noticed a second and a third time 
in the succeeding pages, as involving the final settle- 
ment of the question relative to the language, it is 
proper should be here briefly but distinctly stated. 

Soon after the blank call was sent to Holland, the 
principal opponents of the measure concerted among 
tliemsslves a plan for turning out of office those that 
had given it their support, and putting in men who 
would endeavor, at once, to nullify all the proceedings 
in the case. In order to carry these designs, it was 
proposed that at the next election, the members in full 



66 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENEY LIVINGSTON. 

communion, a majority of whom they believed was on 
their side, should choose the new Consistory in contra- 
vention to a long immemorial practice of the Church, 
or, at least, assert their right to do so ; and, in the 
event of its being denied, immediately seek redress in a 
court of justice. Accordingly, in the ensuing October, 
when the election was held, the right was claimed, in 
due form, by a Mr. Abel Hardenbrook, who offered to 
vote upon the occasion. The vote was of course re- 
jected, and that rejection was made, without any delay, 
the ground of a judicial process. 

The English language ought, in reality, to have been 
introduced into the Dutch Church fifty years* sooner 
than it was; and would have been introduced, if the 
future prosperity of the Church had been properly con- 
sulted. And, though the fathers of the Church, some 
of whom were truly pious and excellent persons, were 
excusable for opposing the change, prior to the adop- 
tion of any measures to settle an English preacher, 
since they honestly believed that it would lead to de- 
plorable results ; it may seem strange, that after a call 
was actually sent to Holland, they should try to break 

* Dr. Livingston thought it should have been introduced an hundred 
years before. Mr. P. V. B. Livingston, a respectable relative of his, in 
a letter dated February 1769, writing on the subject says : "Had this 
been done in this city thirty years ago, the Dutch congregation would 
have been much more numerous than it is now. The greatest part of 
the Episcopal Church consists of accessions they have made from the 
Dutch Church." He adds, that though the Dutch was his mother 
tongue — the first language he had been taught, and was still spoken by 
him with ease, he could not understand a Dutch sermon half as well as 
he could an English one, and that as for his children, " there was not 
one that understood a sentence in Dutch." 



THE STATE OF THE CHURCH. 



67 



down an old established custom, and show such a 
determined purpose to maintain the stand they had 
taken. 

It is still more surprising that, besides the other 
motives which ought to have had some influence upon 
them, the spiritual welfare of their children, who un- 
derstood, as was admitted, very little of Dutch sermons, 
did not constrain them to acquiesce in the decision of 
the constituted authority of the Church. But the con- 
duct of the best of men is sometimes unaccountably 
inconsistent with the principles they profess ; and great 
allowance must be made for the force of old and rooted 
prejudices. Besides, there are ever those whose interest 
prompts them to take advantage of the weakness of 
others, to inflame their passions, and to provoke them 
to deeds which must issue in shame and regret. 

Some of those most offended at the introduction of 
the English language, after finding their opposition 
fruitless, left the Dutch Church and connected them- 
selves with the Episcopal, saying: "If we must have 
English, we will have all English." Among these 
were many of the most honored families of the city, 
the Stuy vesants, the Clarksons, the Van Wagenens, the 
Livingstons, the Schermerhorns, and others. 



68 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



CHAPTER IV. 

CIRCUMSTANCES RELATING TO HIS THEOLOGICAL 
STUDIES, AND TO THE CHURCH OF NEW- YORK. 

a.d. 1765-1767. 

The state of the Dutch Church in America, at the 
time when Mr. Livingston thought of entering upon 
the study of divinity was not such, it must be con- 
fessed, as was likely to excite in him the least inclina- 
tion to become one of her ministers. The great schism 
that existed, the hatred and turmoil so prevalent in 
consequence, the difficulty of obtaining ordination, his 
ignorance of the language then used in divine service 
in every part of the Church, except a single congrega- 
tion — for, owing to the education he had received, he 
was not at all familiar with it ; these were discourage- 
ments which, it is natural to imagine, would have deter- 
mined him, without hesitation, to join some other de- 
nomination of Christians. But he did hesitate, notwith- 
standing : and he decided, eventually, to continue in the 
Church, 

Nor was there any bigotry in this decision ; it was 
rather magnanimous. His heart glowed with Christian 
charity. He detested the spirit that ^regards any ecclc- 



HIS THEOLOGICAL STUDIES. 



69 



siastical line of demarcation as the boundary beyond 
which the operations of saving grace must necessarily 
cease, or the blind zeal which debars from a participa- 
tion in the benefits of salvation, all who are without 
the pale of a particular church. He believed that the 
exercise of that faith in Christ, which is the effect of a 
divine influence upon the heart, and not the mere fact 
of belonging to a church, however pure its doctrines, 
or primitive its government, secured heaven to a sin- 
ner; and, therefore, that all of every name, having 
that faith, and worshipping in spirit and truth, were of 
the number of Grod's precious people, and would be 
saved. Still, as he observed some difference in the 
distinctive peculiarities of the several denominations, 
whose standards included substantially the same articles 
of faith, he deemed it proper, before making any posi- 
tive arrangements for his future studies to satisfy him- 
self which church was, in every respect, the most com- 
formable to the model presented in the word of God, 
and in which he would have the fairest prospect of use- 
fulness. The inquiry was one of great importance; 
and the result showed, that he had sought in it only the 
testimony of a good conscience. Those very circum- 
stances, which almost any other youth similarly situ- 
ated, would have viewed as conveying a command of 
Providence to leave the Dutch Church, he viewed as 
laying him under an obligation, in some measure, to 
remain in it. So far from having a discouraging effect, 
they had, on the contrary, a powerful influence in pro- 
ducing the resolution which he finally adopted. In 
the manuscript, from which extracts have already 
been made, he thus relates the reasons of this prefer- 
ence. 



70 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



" Wlien the main question respecting my engagement 
in the ministry was decided, another of no small mag- 
nitude-arose, upon which it was necessary with caution 
and good conscience, to determine. This was, to what 
denomination of Christians duty prompted an attach- 
ment, or in which Church I ought to minister. The 
Episcopalian, Presbyterian, and Dutch, were the only 
three among which a selection was to be made. In re- 
gard to the Episcopalians, I considered them as very 
respectable, and supposed their doctrines, as expressed 
in their articles of faith and liturgy, to be sound and 
excellent ; but I was under the impression that those 
doctrines were not cordially maintained, certainly not 
generally preached by the ministers of that Church, 
and that I could not, therefore, hold a cheerful commun- 
ion with them. Besides, their ceremonies, repetitions, 
and what I thought to be an unmeaning and improper 
parade in worship, lessened my admiration for them ; 
while their Popish bigotry in favor of a monarchical 
government of their Church, with their frivolous affec- 
tation of superiority above other denominations, to 
whom, in many respects, they were vastly inferior, ex- 
ceedingly disgusted me. To their own master I left 
them, but I did not wish to join them. In the Presby- 
terian Church I had been often instructed and edified. 
Their doctrines were pure, and their preaching was 
evangelical and practical. Their mode of worship ap- 
peared to be consistent with the spirituality, simplicity, 
and dignity of the New Testament Dispensation, and 
their form of government was founded upon that prin- 
ciple of equality which the Lord Jesus established 
among the ministers of his Church. I could have joined 



HIS THEOLOGICAL STUDIES. 



71 



the Presbyterian Church with great freedom, and would 
have done so, had not motives occurred which induced 
me to prefer the Dutch Church. My parents were 
members, in full communion, of the Eeformed Dutch 
Church; I was baptized in that Church, and thus a 
member of it, although not yet in full communion ; and, 
in my estimation, the doctrines, worship, and govern- 
ment of the Church, were pure and evangelical. This 
decided the inquiry, and convinced me, that as I had 
already belonged to a Church which was equal in its 
purity to any in the world, it was my duty to remain 
in it, and consecrate my future service in that connec- 
tion and denomination." 

" There was another motive which, imperceptibly, 
yet powerfully inclined me to this determination. An 
unhappy schism and controversy had, for several years, 
subsisted in the Dutch Churches in America, which, 
unless soon suppressed, threatened the annihilation of 
that whole denomination. The precise grounds of the 
dispute, or the best means of reconciling the contend- 
ing parties, I had not then completely surveyed. The 
existing facts, however, were notorious and afflictive; 
and I understood enough to convince me of the inevit- 
able ruin which was impending, and must soon be ex- 
perienced, if those dissensions were not healed. For 
the restoration of peace and prosperity in this distin- 
guished portion of the Lord's vineyard, I felt an ardent 
desire ; and it was powerfully impressed upon my mind, 
that God would render me, however unworthy and un- 
fit for that arduous work, an instrument in his hand to 
compromise and heal these dissensions, and raise the 
reputation and establish the dignity and usefulness of 



72 



MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



the Dutch. Church in America. In what way these 
great objects were to be effected, or how the Lord 
would prepare, and afterwards employ me for that 
purpose, I did not know, nor did this excite any diffi- 
dence or uneasiness. The point was settled in my mind, 
and I was fully persuaded it would be accomplished. 
This removed all further hesitation, and fixed my de- 
termination to abide in my own Church. The poste- 
rior dealings of Divine Providence, and the gracious 
fulfillment of my expectations, have afforded me abun- 
dant evidence that my choice has been crowned with 
the divine approbation.*' 

The impression which it appears he had, that he 
would be made in some way instrumental in restoring 
peace to the Church, and which was so strong as to fix 
his determination to abide in it, some probably would 
pronounce "the baseless fabric of a vision," or a mere 
whim of self-importance; but it was plainly neither. 
It would have been little less than perfect idiocy for 
him, under the influence of ambition and conceit, to se- 
lect for pursuit an object of such precarious attainment. 
Something more obviously practicable, something en- 
vironed with fewer difficulties, and not quite so con- 
tingent in its nature would have been aimed at. He 
would rather have fixed his eyes upon the plain path- 
way to comfort, usefulness, and honorable distinction, 
then presented in either the Presbyterian or Episcopal 
Church. The impression, it is believed, therefore, was 
from God ; and the determination he formed, was, all 
things considered, an evidence of genuine humility, and 
of a sincere desire to promote the divine glory. 



HIS THEOLOGICAL STUDIES. 



73 



Mr. Livingston having now (in the spring of 1765) 
in a good measure recovered his health, occupied much 
of his time in reading historical, poetical, and other 
works, calculated to improve him in general and polite 
literature. Among the authors that engaged his atten- 
tion was Shakspeare ; but he had no relish for dramatic 
performances. And it will not be amiss, perhaps, 
though it be a slight infringement of the continuity of 
the present narrative, to insert here his sentiments 
upon the subject of the Theatre. They are exceedingly 
just, and to some readers of these pages, may admin- 
ister seasonable and salutary counsel, since the theatre 
is a place to which it is but too fashionable for persons 
of every age to resort. 

" I was early convinced," he says, " that the theatre, 
whatever modifications it might promise, and how in- 
nocent soever it might prove to some, who, burdened 
with business, seek a relaxation at the play-house, was, 
in fact, in its very scope and natural influence, the 
nursery of vice, and ruinous to youth ; that it produced 
dangerous temptations; dissipated the mind from se- 
rious exercises ; and, in its whole apparatus of show, 
drapery, noise, and insinuating scenes, was inimical to 
that rigid virtue, that strict industry, and those sober 
and prudent sentiments and habits, which every youth 
ought to study and maintain. I was confident that 
the frequent and vain and wicked invocation of the di- 
vine name; the irreligious, indelicate, and even ob- 
scene insinuations ; the avowed provocatives to unsanc- 
tified passions; and, at best, the vulgar and foolish 
subjects with which the drama, especially the comic, 
abounds, render it unworthy the approbation of a well- 
4 



74 



MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



informed, and especially of a pious mind, and wholly 
improper to be honored with the presence and counte- 
nance of a real Christian, He whose heart is renewed, 
who loves a holy God, and trembles at his word ; who 
is devoted to the Saviour that died to redeem him 
from a world which lieth in wickedness, and who prays 
daily to be kept from temptation, will not go to the 
play-house. Unconverted men, even those who have 
the form of godliness, but are destitute of its power, 
may think it strange that the Lord's people do not run 
with them to the same excess of dissipation and amuse- 
ments. But, if it should ever please God to bring 
those men to a correct knowledge of their own vile 
and deceitful hearts, and make them anxious to be 
saved from their sins, through a crucified Redeemer, 
they will readily know and acknowledge that a play- 
house is inimical to their devotion, and fatal to their 
peace. They will cordially unite with all sincere peni- 
tents in disapproving the theatre ; and without being 
swayed or overawed by the interested or deluded sons of 
pleasure, will pronounce the play-house to be the most 
pernicious institution that exists in civilized and polish- 
ed society. They will condemn it as the greatest 
enemy to the religion of the holy Jesus, and wonder 
that it is suffered to prevail, or meets with patrons in 
nations who are called after the name of Christ." 

" My early aversion to the theatre has increased and 
been corroborated by painful observation. I have 
known several hopeful youths of respectable connec- 
tions, who might have been an honor to their families, 
and a blessing to the community, to be totally ruined 
by their early attachment to the play-house. Their 



HIS THEOLOGICAL STUDIES. 



75 



corruption commenced with their attendance at the 
theatre. ' There they formed an acquaintance with low 
and unworthy characters ; there, under its baneful 
influence, they grew indolent and dissipated, impatient 
of study and close application to any business ; and, in 
the issue, they became some of them insipid and use- 
less drones and coxcombs, many of them final victims 
to intemperance, and all of them a grief to their pa- 
rents." The truth of this testimony will not be called in 
question by any who were acquainted personally with 
the witness, or know the pure and elevated character 
he sustained ; and it is earnestly desired that it may 
prove the means of turning the feet of some from a 
house which is the way to hell, going dozen to the cham- 
bers of death. 

To return to the narrative ; Mr. Livingston, it was 
stated, as soon as he found himself convalescent, engag- 
ed in an extensive course of reading. Nothing occurred 
after this worthy of particular notice, till he had his first 
interview with the excellent Laicllie, which took place 
some time in the following summer, and proved the 
commencement of a cordial, unreserved, and lasting 
intimacy between them. At this interview, it is pre- 
sumed, he disclosed his purpose to consecrate himself 
to the ministry of reconciliation. Whether the dis- 
closure was made then, or afterwards, the good Doctor, 
knowing the labors connected with the sacred employ- 
ment, and perceiving his young friend to be in feeble 
health, at first seemed to doubt as to the advice it 
would be proper for him to give in the case; but he did 
not doubt long. Mr. Livingston soon convinced him 



76 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 

that the purpose was not to be abandoned on the 
ground of the present state of his health, that he had 
fully made up his mind to attempt the prosecution of 
it, leaving the event with God and, at the same time, 
cherishing a confident hope that health would be given, 
and whatever else he might need. Upon the appear- 
ance of such piety, and zeal, and trust in God, Dr. 
Laidlie at once encouraged him to make the attempt, 
and suggested that it would be to his advantage to go 
to Europe, and to prosecute his theological studies in 
one of the celebrated Universities of Holland. The 
suggestion was received with due respect. He had 
wished to visit that country, before this conversation 
took place, that he might attempt the removal of the 
grievances which had produced the unhappy breach 
here; being persuaded that if he could inform the 
ministers of Amsterdam of the precise state of these 
churches, something would be done for their benefit ; 
and now, that another inducement to go there was pre- 
sented, he thought, if there should be such a concur- 
rence of circumstances as to show him that Providence 
approved it, he would undertake the voyage. 

In July, he took the degree of master of arts ; and 
the succeeding winter he spent in the city of New- 
York. The society of Dr. Laidlie, and other pious 
friends which he daily enjoyed ; the religious meetings 
he frequented ; and the accurate and extensive know- 
ledge he acquired of the affairs of the Church during 
this season, rendered it both a pleasant and useful 
winter to him ; and the sojourn was highly necessary in 
reference to the important object in contemplation. 

Finding in the spring his health considerably im- 



HIS THEOLOGICAL STUDIES. 



77 



proved, and Lis father having cheerfully consented to 
his receiving a foreign education for the ministry, as 
also to defray all the charges which might attend it, he 
resolved to cross the Atlantic. On the twelfth of May, 
1766, every suitable preparation being made, he bade 
adieu to relatives and friends, and set sail for Amster- 
dam. He was now within a few weeks of the twentieth 
year of his age ; and his youth, his delicate health, the 
object which he had in view in venturing upon the 
voyage, and other circumstances, imparted to the event, 
in the eyes of many, a peculiar and touching interest. 
Some of the New- York congregation already cherished 
the hope that he would, at a proper time, return to 
labor among them in holy things. The intercourse of 
a few months had given them a favorable opinion of 
his piety and talents, and he departed with their fervent 
prayers to Heaven in his behalf. He had a tolerably 
pleasant voyage. That Almighty Being, who holds 
the winds in his fists, and the waters in the hollow of 
his hand, protected his young servant from dangers, and 
conveyed him safely to his particular destination. 
Once, indeed, the vessel when sailing up the British 
Channel, was in quite a perilous situation. The cap- 
tain had been unable, owing to cloudy weather, to take 
an observation for several days ; and, mistaking the 
part of the Channel where he was, unwittingly got 
on the coast of France, very near the shore. The 
vessel was in imminent danger of being wrecked ; but 
just then, a kind Providence sent a favorable wind, 
which wafted her in a few hours abreast of Dover. 

On the twentieth of June, or in thirty ^nine days after 
leaving New- York, he arrived at Amsterdam, The 



78 



MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



attentions lie now received from the several individuals 
to whom lie had brought letters of recommendation, 
were of the most gratifying kind. To Mr. J. Chabo- 
nell, on the Keyser's Graft, whose house, on his arrival, 
at the particular request of that gentleman, he made his 
home ; to Mr. Daniel Crommelin and his sons ; to Mr. 
Van Haerlingen ; and to Mr. Anthony Van Eensselaer, 
with whom he afterwards abode whenever he visited 
Amsterdam, he felt himself much indebted. The kind- 
ness of these generous Hollanders, especially of the 
family of Mr. Van Eensselaer, he could never forget. 

Almost immediately upon his arrival, he endeavored 
to learn where he could most advantageously settle 
himself, to pursue his theological studies ; and the 
information given him by the intelligent persons 
with whom he conversed, very soon determined the 
question in favor of the University of Utrecht. The 
universities of Leyden and Groningen had a high repu- 
tation; but the preeminence in public opinion, he 
found, belonged to the one at Utrecht. Here was a 
man who, in the department of theology, had no com- 
peer in the country, Professor GL Bonnet. For piety, 
eloquence, and learning, he was decidedly the most dis- 
tinguished professor in Holland; and when Mr. Liv- 
ingston became satisfied of the fact, he did not hesitate 
to fix upon Utrecht as the place of his future resi- 
dence. 

In all the universities of Holland, it is customary to 
have a long vacation, (from May to October,) and it be- 
ing now the season of the vacation, he did not proceed 
immediately to the University, but tarried a few weeks 
in Amsterdam, cultivating an acquaintance with a num- 



HIS THEOLOGICAL STUDIES. 



79 



ber of godly persons. The time was well spent. He 
was introduced into just such society as suited his taste- 
that of warm-hearted and intelligent Christians — and he 
derived from it important spiritual benefit. These 
strangers proved, indeed, helpers of his faith and joy. 
They received him with much Christian frankness and 
love, and their conversation was pleasing, spiritual, and 
instructive. But it will readily be supposed that, un- 
accustomed to speak the language, he would be unable 
to maintain a conversation in it. He had a friend, 
however, who could act the part of an interpreter, and 
who accompanied him in his visits for a while ; and 
having often heard the Dutch spoken in America, he 
soon acquired a knowledge of it sufficient for a little 
pious discourse. 

In a village called Tienhoven, not far from Amster- 
dam, there lived a venerable servant of Christ, whose 
name was Schorelenburgh, greatly beloved, and much 
talked of as a person of more than ordinary experience 
in religion. He had been more than fifty years the 
minister of that place, and such was the respect in 
which his character was held that, from far and near, 
many who were asking the way to Zion, or walking in 
spiritual darkness, came to him for counsel. Mr. Liv- 
ingston had a great desire to see this aged and cele- 
brated disciple; and, one day, Mr. Frans Yan Haer- 
lingen, the interpreting friend alluded to, went with, 
him to Tienhoven, and introduced him to Mr. Schore- 
lenburgh. He was highly gratified with the excur- 
sion. The judicious and affectionate conversation 
of the matured saint, who seemed prepared to depart 
at any moment, " with hands fastened on the skies," 



80 MEMOIR OF JOHN" HENRY LIVINGSTON. 

had a happy influence upon his mind, and he left him 
with mingled emotions of veneration and love, feeling 
that he had found a father, to whom in seasons of gloom 
he could freely repair for advice and comfort. 

At a suitable time, he went to Utrecht. Upon his 
arrival here, he was introduced to an American gentle- 
man, Mr. Henry Peterson, an established and respect- 
able merchant of the city, who invited him to his 
house, and hospitably entertained him until he could 
provide himself with convenient lodgings. Professor 
Bonnet gave him a very friendly reception. This dis- 
tinguished person, with official dignity appears to have 
united great suavity of manners ; and his deportment 
to the young stranger was so kind and paternal, that it 
excited in him much filial affection and confidence. 
Mr. Livingston regarded his professor as a sincere 
friend, which he truly was ; and, having such a friend 
to consult, he evinced, at the very commencement of 
his university career, a prudence that is rarely met with 
in a youth but twenty years of age. He would form 
no intimacies ; nay, he carefully avoided all advances 
made to him for acquaintance, until he had the advice 
of the Professor, or knew from him the character of the 
persons who sought his company. This was a wise 
precaution. It had the effect which he desired. It 
kept him a stranger to those whose companionship 
could not fail to injure him ; and it was the means of 
leading him into some of the most respectable society, 
both of the city and of the university. The prudence 
discovered in this fact constituted in after-life one of 
his most prominent characteristics. 

While he was preparing to attend the lectures of the 



HIS THEOLOGICAL STUDIES. 



81 



approaching session, a circumstance occurred, which 
shows how the steps of a good man are ordered by the 
Lord, and how the smallest incidents are often connect- 
ed with the richest and happiest experience of the 
Christian. During his voyage and stay in Amsterdam, 
Mr. Livingston had enjoyed a very comfortable frame 
of mind. His spiritual exercises had been lively and 
pleasant, and he had cherished a confident hope that 
the Lord would preserve his health, and enable him to 
pursue, with vigor and diligence, the studies upon 
which he designed to enter. But, a short time previous 
to the commencement of the lectures, he became much 
dejected, owing to the return, with some severity, of 
the old pain in his breast. Finding himself again af- 
flicted with a complaint which had once menaced him 
with an early death, and apprehending its continu- 
ance, he began to think that he would be compelled to 
abandon his object, and to feel very sensibly the lone- 
liness of his situation, in the midst of strangers. The 
depression of his spirits in consequence was very great ; 
and that he might open his heart to a friend, who 
would probably say something to comfort him, he de- 
termined to make another visit to the venerable Scho- 
relenburgh. Accordingly, he rode one day to Tien- 
hoven. Soon after he had entered the good man's 
dwelling, and the usual salutations had passed between 
them, Mrs. Schorelenburgh, who was truly a mother in 
Israel, inquired with much affectionate solicitude, 
concerning the state of his health. He told her, in 
reply, that " he was in constant pain in his breast, with 
much weakness and dejection of spirits, and that he 
feared he had come three thousand miles from home 
4* 



82 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



in vain." Upon hearing this, the old lady rejoined 
in a few pious and appropriate remarks, and then 
with a very, earnest and impressive look, said: "Do 
you not know that your Lord Jesus is the physi- 
cian of the body as well as of the soul ? Apply to him. 
Bring your body to him in prayer, and pray that he 
will *heal you." He heard her with respectful atten- 
tion, of course ; but there was nothing very striking at 
the moment in her counsel. It, however, left an im- 
pression upon his mind ; and such, in a little while, 
were his exercises under its influence, that he found it 
necessary to take a premature leave of the excellent 
couple and hasten back to Utrecht. As soon as he had 
returned, he entered into his closet and approached the 
Throne of Grace. It was a solemn hour with him. 
The wrestlings of his soul with the Lord were pecu- 
liarly earnest, blended with the exercise of a strong 
filial confidence. He felt that he prayed in faith for 
the Lord to heal him; and when he retired from 
the throne, he had a comfortable persuasion that 
his prayer was heard. "Nay," he says in his own re- 
cital of the interview, and of what followed it, "I be- 
lieved that I was then healed, and my confidence was 
so strong, that I wrote immediately in the journal I 
kept, that, my God had granted me my petition, and 
that I was actually healed, and would never be pre- 
vented by that pain in my breast from prosecuting my 
studies or proceeding in my public work. And it has 
been' so. To the praise of his truth, his grace, and his 
power, I record that he is the healer of the body as 
well as of the soul. He is the hearer of prayer." 
About the same time, he received a letter from a 



THE CHUKCH OF NEW- YORK. 



83 



much, respected friend in New- York, Abraham Lott, 
Esq., detailing the proceedings which had taken place 
within the last year, relative to the introduction of 
English preaching. As this subject lay so near the 
heart of Mr. Livingston and had so much, bearing upon 
his subsequent usefulness, no apology is necessary for 
interrupting the course of the narrative in order to give 
' from Mr. Lott's letter a concise account of the progress 
and termination of the controversy. 

It has been mentioned that a law-suit was commenc- 
ed against the Consistory of the Church of New- York, 
for rejecting the vote of a member of the Church, at a 
consistorial election, held Oct. 1763. This suit was 
undetermined yet in October, 1766. 

At the request of some neutral members of the 
Church, as an unfounded report was in circulation that 
the Dutch party had proposed, but without success, 
terms of reconciliation, the Consistory met about the 
beginning of the month to consider whether any, and if 
any, what means beyond those they had already tried, 
could be adopted to restore peace in the congregation. 
The result of the meeting was, the appointment of a 

committee to propose to Mr. H , the person who 

had sued the Consistory, an amicable settlement of the 
pending litigation. This proposal was not accepted. 
He said " the Church, must be all Dutch, and not Eng- 
lish and when asked what would become of the chil- 
dren who were unacquainted with the Dutch language, 
replied, " that they might go to the Church of England, 
or any where else." Failing in this overture, the 
Consistory authorized two of their body to have an 
interview with Mr. Lefferts, an aged person highly 



84 



MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



respected by both parties, and considered a neutral in 
the dispute, to inquire if he thought an accommodation 
could be effected, and, assuring him of the earnest 
desire of the Consistory to do all in their power towards 
one, to request him to consult the leaders of the Dutch 
party upon the subject. The request was made and 
complied with ; and it was understood that the party 
wished for a composition of the difference ; but, upon 
inquiry, it was found that they had fixed upon terms 
as the basis of a reconciliation which were wholly inad- 
missible. The terms were substantially these : that 
they should have the government of the old Church, 
and retain all the property belonging to it ; that the 
English preacher should not be present at any of the 
meetings of their Consistory ; that their Consistory 
should be a distinct body, with whose discipline and 
other matters the Consistory of the new church should 
have no right to interfere, and in whose elections all 
those that communed with the English party should 
have no voice ; that there should be English preach- 
ing but once on the Sabbath in the new church ; and, 
moreover, that when Dutch was preached in that house, 
the Dutch Consistory should occupy the pews appro- 
priated to the elders and deacons. 

These propositions were considered unfair and hu- 
miliating. They were calculated, it was supposed, to 
produce a separation of the churches ; or, rather, to 
effect ultimately the entire exclusion of Dr. Laidlie 
and the English service from the Dutch Church. 
And it was obvious, that their acceptance would at 
once give to the party greater advantages than they 
could possibly acquire by gaining their suit in law, 



THE CHUECH OF NEW- YORK. 85 

for, in that case, they would acquire only the right of 
voting individually, if members in Ml communion, for 
the officers of the Church ; and being, with respect to 
such members, much weaker than the English party, 
the exercise of the right would avail nothing in reality. 
As the day for the election drew near, that they might 
then come forth in all their strength, they industriously 
circulated a paper for subscription, which was so drawn 
up as to obligate every signer to make a tender of his 
vote, and if that vote should be refused, immediately 
to seek redress in a court of law. 

To defeat the purpose of this compact, which was to 
change finally the mode of election, another paper, 
addressed to the Consistory, and praying them to 
adhere to the ancient practices of the Church in the 
choice of their successors, was speedily prepared and 
handed about for signatures. This petition was signed 
by a majority of the communicants of the Church. It 
was in the following words: 

u To the Rev. and Worthy Consistory of the Reformed 
Protestant Dutch Church of the City of New-York : 

11 The Petition and humble Eequest of us the under- 
written, communicants of the said Church, showeth, — 
That the Petitioners have been credibly informed that 
several of the communicants of the said Church intend, 
on the day appointed by the Charter of the said Church 
for electing Elders, Deacons, and Church-masters, to 
come and vote for Elders, Deacons, and Church-mas- 
ters, contrary to the old invariable usage and custom 
of the said Church, before and since obtaining the said 
charter : That we judge an election by the communi- 



86 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 

cants as an infringement on the constitution of our 
Church, and tending to raise heats, controversies, and 
animosities among the members thereof, contrary to 
that love and esteem which ought to subsist among the 
professors of Christianity. Our earnest request and 
desire therefore is, that the Eeverend and Worthy 
Consistory will by no means deviate from the old con- 
stitutional method of electing Elders, Deacons, and 
Church-masters, but proceed therein as usual, notwith- 
standing any attempt contrary thereto, and we do 
hereby promise and engage personally to attend on 
the day aforesaid, at the old Dutch Church, there to 
agree to the election, nomination and appointment, that 
shall be made by you, according to the usage and con- 
stitution aforesaid. We pray God to heal the un- 
happy breach in our Church; and are, with great 
esteem, etc." 

The promise to attend and approve of the choice of 
the Consistory was made to leave their opponents no 
room to cavil. — to bar all possibility of exception. 

In the hope that the controversy might yet be settled 
in a friendly way before the election, the Consistory 
adopted a paper, containing what were very justly 
styled Articles of Peace, which was submitted to the 
consideration of the Great Consistory; and, being 
approved by that body, was put into the hands of the 
neutral father aforementioned, (Mr. Abraham Lefferts,) 
to be by him laid before the Dutch party. Overtures 
so liberal as those now made, it was hardly to be sup- 
posed could fail of restoring peace. The preliminary 
article required that Dr. Laidlie should be treated as 



THE CHURCH OF NEW-YORK. 



87 



one of the ministers of the Dutch Church. Then 
followed an offer to pay the whole of the Doctor's 
salary by contributions from the English party; an 
offer to bind themselves and their successors to use, 
neither directly nor indirectly, any property which 
had been given for the support of the Dutch minis- 
ters, to maintain the English service; an offer so to 
form the Consistory that the two parties should, in 
point of numbers, be equally represented in it, or, in 
other words, to choose out of twice the number of each 
class to be nominated by the Dutch party, four Elders, 
four Deacons, and two Church-masters, who, with the two 
Dutch ministers, would make its numerical representa- 
tion the same as that of the English party. Two very 
reasonable requests, besides, were made, to wit : that 
there should be a morning and evening service in the 
English language, in the new church, every Sabbath ; 
and that the suit at law should be abandoned. These 
generous overtures, however, were rejected. 

On the fifteenth of the month, one day previous to that 
of the election, the Consistory were informed that the 
Dutch party had deputed certain persons to make 
some proposals, and a committee was accordingly ap- 
pointed to have an interview with these deputies. The 
interview took place in the evening of the same day, 
at the house of Mr. Gleyn Yan Gelder ; but the propo- 
sals, which, from the circumstance of their being ten in 
number, as also from the air of authority running 
through them, were afterwards pleasantly called by the 
other party " Ten Commandments" as they contained 
offensive insinuations, as well as unreasonable demands, 
tended rather to widen than to heal the breach. The 



88 



MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



deputies were informed the next day that the Consis- 
tory could not agree to them. 

Before the hour fixed for the important contest had 
arrived, nearly all the communicants of both parties 
were assembled in £he old church, with a considerable 
company of persons of other denominations, who had 
come, as they said 3 "to behold the Dutchmen quarrel." 

The Consistory now made yet one more attempt to 
produce a reconciliation. They tendered anew the 
"Articles of Peace" and endeavored, for some time, to 
prevail upon their opponents to accede to them ; but 
their efforts proved fruitless. These misguided or 
mis-judging brethren were inflexible to the last mo- 
ment. After the election was over, the names of those 
who would constitute the new Consistory were pub- 
licly read, and (before two notaries public, present by 
request) the members of the church were asked if 
they approved of the choice of the Consistory, and of 
continuing the old mode of election ; and a majority 
was at once discovered, in favor of loth, of more than 
one hundred and thirty. 

This was a signal triumph ; but the discomfited 
party were still very unwilling to yield. Chagrined 
at the result of this proceeding, which completely pre- 
cluded the opportunity they had sought and expected, of 
disputing the legality of the election, and of suing 
the Consistory, they put into the hands of the Eev. 
Mr. De Eonde, the minister that presided upon the 
occasion, and their great friend and champion,* a 

* Mr. De Ronde pursued a course of conduct throughout the contro- 
versy which was much blamed, and made him many enemies. His 
colleague, the Rev. Mr. Ritzema, was more prudent, and uniformly 
.acted as the friend of the English party. 



THE CHURCH OF NEW- YORK. 



89 



paper naming certain persons for Elders, Deacons, and 
Church-masters. As this paper was not addressed to 
the Consistory, they, of course, paid no attention to it ; 
but, after their business was concluded, the president 
took notice of it, and invited those who thought they 
had a right to vote, to come forth. The invitation, 
however, they being by this time either ashamed of 
their cause or convinced that for them to make any 
election would only expose them to ridicule, was not 
obeyed. No one offered to vote. 

The important law-suit, it was now expected, would 
be shortly decided ; and the appellant in the matter, 
with his friends, confident of gaining it, judged it ne- 
cessary to present, in season, a protest against the late 
election, supposing probably that this measure would 
put it in their power to set the same entirely aside, as 
soon as the decision anticipated should be obtained. 
Before, therefore, the Elders, Deacons, and Church- 
masters elect were inducted into their respective offices, 
that is, on the Friday immediately preceding the Lord's 
day appointed for the performance of the ceremony, 
they laid before the Consistory a paper called a Protest, 
and superscribed to the unlawful Consistory, in which 
they declared that the election had been conducted con- 
trary to the Word of God, to the Charter, and to Church 
Orders* This paper was treated with the contempt it 
deserved; and the very next day, to the no little 
mortification of the whole Dutch party, the suit was 
determined in favor of the Consistory. ,f A determina- 

*The protesters were " Abel Hardenbrook, William Elsworth, Tennis 
Tiebout, Johannis Hardenbrook, Hendereens Brevoort." 

f Three of the judges, Messrs. Jones, Smith, and Livingston, were in 



90 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



tion so unlooked for, and obliging the plaintiff to pay 
costs to the amount of about three hundred pounds, 
very soon allayed the zeal for continuing the quarrel 
in a court of justice ; it did more ; it went far to subdue 
the quarrel itself. Those who had been most adverse 
to the authority and measures of the Consistory, gradu- 
ally became more tame, while the Consistory, on the 
other hand, showed a kind, conciliatory spirit, conced- 
ing all that could be reasonably asked ; and the Church, 
which had been for a long time a spectacle to surround- 
ing denominations, put on consequently a more pleasing 
and inviting appearance. 

That the reader may know what confidence was to 
be placed in the CfimmMnication, from which the facts 
presented in the foregoing statement have been taken, 
the following brief extract from a letter of Dr. Laidlie 
to Mr. Livingston, dated November 3, is inserted : 

" Thanks be to our blessed Lord, for all that expe- 
rience he has given you of his love and faithfulness. 
Trust in him at all times : none that trust in him shall 
be ashamed. I am truly glad that you have settled at 
Utrecht, and that you find Professor Bonnet a gentle- 
man so much to your mind. I had proceeded far in 
another letter for you, and begun an historical account 
of Church affairs since you left us ; but having heard 
that this was the province of our friend, A. Lott, and 
he having shown me a very particular journal of every 
thing worthy your hearing on this subject, I dropt it. 

favor of the Consistory; one, Mr. Horsmanden, was in favor of Mr. 
Hardenbrook. The reader will probably be gratified to see an abstract 
of this important triaL See Appendix B. 



THE CHUECH OF NEW- YORK. 



91 



But I can not omit calling upon you to bless the Lord 
with us, and to exalt his holy name, for the remarka- 
ble interposition of his kind providence in the behalf 
of his cause and people. How many proofs of his being 
the hearer and answerer of prayer t" 

But it must not be understood that the congre- 
gation was brought at once into a state of perfect 
harmony and peace. It was not to be expected 
that all opposition would instantly cease ; and though 
such as had been the most openly and violently 
hostile, were a good deal humbled by what had now 
occurred, yet they still cherished a vindictive tem- 
per; and having failed in law, tried other means of 
annoying the friends of English preaching. One of 
these was the invention and circulation of little stories 
tending to vilify the character of the excellent Laidlie, 
who thus speaks of this unworthy conduct, in another 
letter to Mr. Livingston, of a later date: "Notwith- 
standing, blessed be God, I have of late felt more of 
that comfortable stayedness of trust and establishment 
of heart than I ever felt before ; and in this, I observe 
not only the great goodness of my Lord and Master to 
my soul, in the way of edification or upbuilding in the 
divine life, but that this fills and prepares me for storms, 
and supports me under the reproach and calumny 
thrown out against me on every side. The great disap- 
pointment the Dutch party have met with, instead of 
reclaiming them, has added fury to their rage ; they 
think to revenge themselves upon me, though, by their 
own confession, I am not the cause ; yet they find to 
reproach me is the surest way to vex my friends, who 



92 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 

are so kind as never to mention these things to me, 
though, all with whom I am obliged to converse have 
not that prudence, so that I must hear many a spiteful 
lie. But, blessed be God, he not only keeps me from 
laying things to heart, but gives a meek, humble, for- 
giving temper of mind, so that I can pray for, and 
freely forgive the worst of my enemies among men. 
Though the Dutch party have now entirely given over 
coming to church when I preach, and hear only Mr. 
De Eonde, whom they call their wettige predikant, [law- 
ful minister,] and whom I have reason to suspect to be 
at the bottom of their obstinate opposition ; though he 
has begun of late to speak uncommonly favorable of 
me and my sermons ; though said party use every 
method to make me uneasy ; yet Jesus makes me 
triumph, and enables me to rest in him, only desiring 
to be found faithful and in all things to approve myself 
to him in well-doing. I have enlarged too much on 
this." 

In spite of all they could say or do, Dr. Laidlie was 
beloved and useful, and the Church was in a prosper- 
ous state ; nay, so much had the congregation increased 
under English preaching, that it was found necessary 
to erect another, or a third place* for public worship. 
The constantly increasing evidences of the propriety 
of the change which had been effected, served only to 
heighten their unfriendly feelings ; and another expe- 
dient, which they tried to regain their lost influence or 
to make fresh trouble, was the presentation before the 

* By a letter of Mr. Lott, dated October 22, 1161, this building, (now 
called the North Church,) it appears, was then considerably advanced. 
The foundation was laid probably in the spring of the same year. 



THE CHURCH OF NEW-YOBK. 



93 



Governor and Council of a formal complaint against the 
Consistory. This was their dernier resort ; but here 
their expectations were sadly disappointed. The Gov- 
ernor and Council ordered a copy of the complaint to 
be given to the Consistory, and recommended that the 
same be answered.* An answer was, accordingly, pre- 
pared and submitted; and the reader may learn the 
result of this affair from a paragraph in another of Dr. 
Laicllie's letters, dated December, 1767. It is as fol- 
lows : " You know how strangely poor Mr. De Eonde 
has behaved for some time past. He strongly supported, 
or rather has kept alive, the otherwise dying dissensions 
in our congregation ; but the Dutch party having 
brought the affair before the Governor and Council, 
and the Consistory being desired to give in an answer 
to several complaints lodged before said Board by the 
Dutch party, the Consistory accordingly gave in an an- 
swer, out of mere complaisance ; and the Governor and 
Council decided the matter by declaring it was not cog- 
nizable by them, a declaration not very honorable for 
the Board who made it, and by which the last finishing 
blow was given to all the hopes of the Dutch party. 
This has made them all very calm." 

The dispute was now settled. The vanquished party 
were treated with tenderness, and for many years after, 
or until the number remaining became very small, they 
maintained service in the old church, in the language 
for the preservation of which they had so long and so 
strenuously contended ; but English preaching was no 
more opposed. It need scarcely be added, that the 

* The complaint and the answer are given in full in the Documentaiy 
History of New- York, vol. iii. p. 308. 



94 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 

influence of these occurrences was felt in many congre- 
gations, and led, at length, to a general substitution of 
the English for the Dutch language in the public wor- 
ship of Grod ; and, since this change had ultimately so 
extensive and important an influence upon the Church 
at large, the narrative which has been given of all that 
related to it will not be thought too protracted or 
minute. 



RESIDENCE IN HOLLAND. 



95 



CHAPTBE Y. 

FROM THE COMMENCEMENT OF HIS STUDIES IN THE 
UNIYEESITY OF UTRECHT, TILL HIS RETURN TO NEW- 
YORK. 

A. D. lT66-mo. 

The University of Utrecht is, next to that of Ley- 
den, the oldest institution of the kind in the United 
Netherlands, having been founded in 1636. 

The general character of these institutions in Holland 
is thus described : u The external appearance of the uni- 
versities," says Guthrie, M is rather mean, and the build- 
ings old ; but these defects are amply compensated by 
the variety of solid and useful learning taught in them. 
There are abundance of youth of the principal nobility 
and gentry, from most countries in Europe, at these 
seminaries of literature ; and, as every one may live as 
he pleases, without being obliged to be profuse in his 
expenses, or so much as quitting his night-gown for 
weeks or months together, foreigners of all ranks and 
conditions are to be seen here." 

Of the one which he attended, Mr. Livingston has 
left this account : 11 There were no public buildings be- 
longing to the University of Utrecht. A large hall 
appertaining to the old cathedral or Dome Kirk, was 
occasionally used for public orations and disputations ; , 



96 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



and, in a hall of the St. Jans Kirk, the public library 
was deposited. This was not large in respect to the 
number of books, as it contained chiefly such as were 
very rare ; but it was especially celebrated for a rich 
collection of manuscripts. The lectures of the profes- 
sors were all held in their own respective houses. There 
were also no buildings appropriated as lodgings for the 
students. They hired chambers, agreeably to their 
choice, among the citizens. It was usual for them to 
dine in select parties, in boarding-houses. The average 
number of students at the University of Utrecht, dur- 
ing the four years I resided there, was to me unknown. 
The students who attend to the different branches of 
science repair all to their own respective lecture-rooms, 
and have little or no knowledge of any others. And, 
as there are several professors, even of the same science, 
each of them has a distinct number of students, who 
seldom associate familiarly with those who attend a 
different professor. It was, therefore, no easy matter 
to ascertain the whole number, and impossible to be- 
come familiarly acquainted with all." 

Mr. Livingston, having completed the preparatory 
arrangements which he judged necessary to facilitate 
the prosecution of his studies, as soon as the session of 
the university opened, was admitted a member, and 
commenced a regular attendance upon several profes- 
sors. Professor Bonnet, whose department was didactic 
and polemic theology, he considered his Gamaliel. He 
attended also Professor Elsnerus, in didactic theology ; 
in the Hebrew language, and Jewish antiquities, Pro- 
fessor Eavius; in the biblical criticism of the New 
Testament, Professor Segaar ; and subsequently, upon 



RESIDENCE IN HOLLAND. 



97 



the Greek of tlie New Testament, Professor Van 
Goens. These learned men delivered all their lectures 
in the Latin language, and our young student not being 
sufficiently familiar with it to understand it in oral dis- 
course, would not, at first, hear them with either much 
interest or benefit. But he applied himself afresh most 
assiduously to the study of the Latin classics ; and, as 
he had been well grounded in the elementary principles 
of the language, he soon became able to receive the 
instructions of his professors without embarrassment or 
loss. 

Before he left the university, he could speak the 
Latin and the Dutch almost as readily as his native 
tongue ; and, to quote his own words, he " thought and 
wrote, and even prayed in secret, undesignedly, some- 
times in Latin, and sometimes in Dutch." 

Besides pursuing with ardor and diligence the studies 
that have been enumerated, he improved every oppor- 
tunity to gain useful information upon other subjects, 
though not immediately connected with theology ; and 
for this purpose occasionally attended the public lec- 
tures upon chemistry, anatomy, and dissections. Dur- 
ing the whole period of his stay at the university, he 
appears to have conscientiously endeavored to make 
the best possible use of his time. 

But while he labored to obtain an extensive and 
thorough theoretical acquaintance with the system of 
divine truth, he was not inattentive to the state of his 
heart ; he was concerned to know, from his own happy 
experience, the practical and gracious influence of that 
truth. The doctrines he was taught, he brought to the 
touchstone of the inspired volume ; for " I was deter- 
5 



98 



MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



mined," lie says, "never to adopt any sentiment upon 
the authority of public profession, or the decision of 
any man, however dignified or imposing his name or 
influence might be, unless I was convinced it was 
founded upon the word of God." And, as they were 
severally and successively discussed in the course of 
the lectures, it was his custom to search the Bible for 
their authority ; to read the best treatises upon them 
he could find ; and, at the same time, to pray fervently 
that the Lord would instruct him and assure him of 
his own interest in each of them. Such a method of 
prosecuting his favorite study could not fail to be suc- 
cessful ; and the student of theology who does not act 
upon the principle it involves, who does not seek to 
grow in grace, as well as in knowledge — to unite the 
cultivation of the heart with the improvement of the 
mind, can not estimate, as he ought, the holy work in 
which he proposes to engage, nor become thoroughly 
furnished for it. 

Mr. Livingston was no stranger at the throne of 
grace. He loved to pray ; and daily intercourse with 
a few eminently pious young friends of the univer- 
sity contributed not a little to foster his devotional 
spirit. Among those between whom and himself a 
most affectionate intimacy subsisted, he has particu- 
larly named Messrs. Van Yloten, I. L. Verster, A. Boe- 
len, I Kneppelhout, L Prinse, W. C. Hoog, I. Verduin, 
I. Van De Kasteele, L B. Hendricks, H. Van Alphen, 
C. Boers, S. Spiering, and A. Eutgers. With these 
individuals, who were respected for their literary attain- 
ments, but especially for their faith and godly zeal, he 
constantly associated. They aided him in his studies ; 



RESIDENCE IN HOLLAND. 



99 



and their pious conversation was very conducive to his 
spiritual comfort and edification. It is an interesting 
circumstance shoeing at once the character of this little 
fraternity, and how much good a professor who has in 
him the spirit of grace and supplication can do, oth- 
erwise than by imparting instruction, that many of them 
regularly attended Professor Elsnerus, chiefly for the 
benefit they derived from the fervent prayers with 
which he opened and closed his lectures. The lectures 
of this venerable man are represented as interesting and 
instructive, but his prayers as peculiarly spiritual and 
moving — as having a holy and elevating influence upon 
their hearts. That they were drawn thither by his 
extraordinary gift in prayer, exhibits their piety in a 
very favorable light ; and the gift was more honorable 
to him than would have been, without it, the most 
splendid genius or the most profound erudition. 

Mr. Livingston's habit of pondering upon the sub- 
ject of the last lecture, once occasioned him a short but 
distressing conflict, of which, and also of the means of 
his deliverance from it, he has left the following 
account : 

"I was walking one day alone, under the rows of 
trees on the border of the canal, without the walls of 
the city, and meditating upon Divine Providence, 
which was, at that time, the subject of our lectures, 
when a blasphemous objection against that doctrine 
suddenly and powerfully arose in my mind ; and with, 
great violence, a fierce suggestion succeeded, almost in 
the very words of 2 Pet. 3:4. All things continue as 
they were, There is no Providence : there is no superior 
or divine agency. Causes and effects, with their train of 



100 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON, 

events, roll uninterruptedly on, and nations and human 
affairs proceed invariably the same, without the interposi- 
tion of God or Providence. My soul was disturbed and 
afflicted ; I paused, and was overwhelmed with sur- 
prise, alarm, and grief. But a very different sugges- 
tion soon ensued. It was not an articulate sound, nor 
any audible voice ; yet it conveyed ideas as correct and 
impressive, as if I had heard one speaking to me. It 
said : You shall live to see signal and indisputable inter- 
positions of Divine Providence ; you shall live to see the rise 
and downfall of governments ; you will see new nations 
commence, and old nations convulsed and changed. A 
series of new and astonishing events, which will influence 
the Church and the world, will hcppen in your life-time, 
and prove the Providence of God. It was no enthusiasm. 
I had not anticipated any thing of that kind. I was 
cool and thoughtful. It produced, at the moment, 
great agitation of mind. Yet I left the suggestion, and 
whatever it might mean, as well as whatever might 
follow, with great reverence and humble adoration, to 
the Lord. But it removed the evil suggestion against 
Providence, and I became, during that walk and medita- 
tion, confirmed in the doctrine, with enlarged views, 
precision, and evidence, that have never since been 
assaulted or disturbed. I often afterwards recollected 
the suggestion, and expected the accomplishment. 7 ' 

That in every age of the Church, there have been 
children of God favored with extraordinary intimations 
of things future, appears plainly from the histories of 
Christian experience. Every Christian does not receive 
them ; nor are they a necessary part of the operations 
of saving grace ; but the fact is certain, that they have 



RESIDENCE IX HOLLAND. 



101 



been made, and, in some isolated cases, have been fully 
verified by subsequent occurrences in Providence. The 
purpose of God in granting these to any, is not to make 
them prophets, but to deliver them from a subtle 
temptation, to confirm their faith, or in some other way 
promote their salvation, or perhaps to accomplish some 
gracious purpose in other persons. God has his own way 
of working, in calling and conducting his children to 
heaven. When they pass through the waters, he will be 
with them : and through the rivers, they shall not overflow 
them ; when they walk through the fire, they shall not be 
burnt, neither shall the flame kindle upon them. He 
will not suffer his faithfulness to fail; out ic ill supply all 
their need, according to his riches in glory, by Christ Jesus. 
He knows the best method of succoring them that are 
tempted; and always " will with the temptation also 
make a way to escape." And this is the explanation 
of the occurrence just related. The prophetic sugges- 
tion of which Mr. Livingston speaks, was made at a 
moment when he was under the influence of a most 
violent and impious temptation. It was exactly calcu- 
lated to prevent the temptation from having any effect ; 
and, accordingly, it at once extricated him from the 
snare of the devil, and established his confidence in 
God as the God of Providence. Believing it was from- 
God, though he had no miraculous evidence of the fact, 
he naturally waited for its accomplishment ; and this it 
pleased the Lord to spare him to witness. "And now," 
(alluding to the time when writing the account, 1818,) 
he adds, " I can put my seal to its truth. I have lived 
to see the new nation of the United States arise and 
become a great civil power. I was thirty years old 



102 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



at the commencement of our revolution, * 
* * * * * I was confident the Lord would 
help us, even in the darkest periods of the war ; and he 
did help us. * * *• * • * I have lived 
also to see the probable beginnings of new nations, which 
are now rising in South- America ; not to mention the 
actual establishment of that singular nation in St. 
Domingo. Even in Holland, the very nation in which 
I then was, the government has been changed, and a 
new nation formed. My friends there often exultingly 
boasted, that Belgium had always been a Eepublic, 
even from the days of Julius Caesar, but they are now 
under a monarchical government : they are a new 
nation. I have lived to see the prostration of many 
nations in Europe, during the singular career of Napo- 
leon Bonaparte ; and they are all, in many respects, 
now changed from what they were when this suggestion 
was made to me. In the Church, more unexpected and 
surprising events have succeeded. The formation of 
Missionary Societies, and the success of the Missiona- 
ries, and now lately, of Bible Societies, and the extensive 
dispersion of the blessed Word, constitute a new epoch ; 
and, while Christians see and believe, and rejoice that 
the Lord reigneth, the wicked are made to feel and 
acknowledge that, verily, there is a God who judgeth in 
the earth ; there is a Divine Providence." 

During his residence at Utrecht, he had some pleas- 
ing evidence, in being made the instrument of convert- 
ing several persons, that he was indeed called to win 
souls for Christ. Possessing naturally a happy talent 
at conversation, he employed it, as he had opportunity, 
to commend the grace of the Eedeemer, or to excite 



RESIDENCE IN HOLLAND. 



103 



an attention to the momentous concerns of eternity. 
This he could do with an ease and dignity and solemnity 
peculiar to himself. 

One evening, when much taken up with his studies, 
a stranger called at his room, and, pretending that he 
had come to present the compliments of a gentleman 
in Amsterdam, showed some inclination to spend the 
evening with him. He had no wish to be interrupted ; 
and there was that in the appearance or behavior of the 
stranger he did not like ; but he had too much polite- 
ness to request him to depart. At length, when he 
saw that the unwelcome visit was to be prolonged, he 
reconciled himself to the interruption as well as he 
could, and silently lifting up his soul in one or two 
ejaculations for the Divine direction and blessing, he 
entered into familiar discourse with him. The conver- 
sation, which was at first upon ordinary affairs and not 
very interesting, he soon turned altogether upon sub- 
jects of religion; and then, as he of course had the 
most to say, it was evangelical, instructive, pointed, 
calculated to convince his visitant, evidently yet in 
an unregenerate state, of the importance of eternal 
things. His observations were listened to, apparently 
with intense interest, until quite a late hour, when 
the gentleman retired with suitable expressions of 
gratitude and respect. Early the next morning a 
note came, containing a request that the writer of it 
might be permitted to renew his visit, as the conver- 
sation of the preceding evening had awakened in him 
a deep concern for the welfare of his soul. Mr. Living- 
ston received the tidings with delight, and immediately 
granted his request in the most affectionate manner. 



104 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 

He now considered the interview which, at its com- 
mencement, had been so disagreeable to him, as an 
extraordinary occurrence, that called for thanksgiving 
and praise ; and, for many weeks after, he daily taught 
the way of salvation to this alarmed, inquiring sinner, 
who in due time obtained a hope, joined the Church, 
and was esteemed a genuine convert — a truly humble 
and exemplary follower of the Lord Jesus. 

Among the students with whom Mr. Livingston asso- 
ciated, was a young man engaged in the study of law, 
the son of an East-India governor. Although not 
pious, he was an amiable youth, and the frequent 
interchange of friendly attentions led to the formation 
of a very tender and confidential intimacy between 
them. 

One day Mr. Livingston called to see him, and while 
in his room, felt a strong desire to talk with him upon 
the subject of the one thing needful ; so strong a de- 
sire, that he determined to do it as soon as some gentle- 
men, who were present, had gone away ; and, though 
urged to accompany them when they took their leave, 
he politely declined the invitation and remained for the 
purpose. Praying that God would guide and assist 
him, he then commenced a plain and serious conversa- 
tion relative to the necessity of a personal interest in 
Christ, in order to salvation ; and to his great joy, he 
discovered before it terminated, some little evidence 
that it had been a profitable conversation. There had 
been so much ingenuousness, and such appearance of 
incipient conviction in the behavior of his friend, that 
he could not but hope his labor of love would result as 
he had prayed it might ; and so it did result. The 



RESIDENCE IX HOLLAND. 



105 



important truths which had been thus faithfully ad- 
dressed to the conscience of this young man, under 
the influence of the Holy Spirit, produced a saving 
change in him. He gave up the study of law, prepared 
for the ministry, and was afterwards a distinguished 
herald of the Cross. In a letter that he wrote to Mr. 
Livingston, when the latter had returned to America, 
he very feelingly adverted to the wise and gracious 
Providence which, having brought the one from the 
East and the other from the West, to meet in Utrecht, 
had so singularly overruled their acquaintance, as to 
make it the memorable means of his conversion. 

Another fact which occurred about this time, shows 
the great difference between a speculative and saving 
knowledge of the truth, and how easily one taught of 
God, though of very limited attainments in learning 
and capable of giving only the simplest instruction 
grounded upon his own experience of the power of 
divine grace, may be used by the Spirit to convey light 
and comfort to the mind even of a philosopher. 

The fame of Bonnet had drawn to the university a 
graduate of the University of Groningen, who was 
already known as the author of some works in Latin, 
respectable for their learning, and was honored with the 
degree of doctor of philosophy. He had come to attend 
the divinity lectures of the celebrated professor, and 
Mr. Livingston being informed of his character, ob- 
tained an introduction to him. The acquaintance soon 
ripened into an unreserved and confidential friendship. 
It so happened, that Dr. D., the gentleman referred to, 
when he had been there a short time, was suddenly 
thrown into a state of great mental distress, through 



106 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



some painful intelligence he had received. The news 
reached him one evening of the death of a person 
whom he had long loved as his own soul, a young cler- 
gyman of extraordinary piety and talents ; and upon 
learning the melancholy event his thoughts became 
wholly absorbed with the bereavement he had sustained. 
He was deeply afflicted, and retired to his bed with a 
dejected and sorrowful heart. 

In the course of the same night, while ruminating 
upon the stroke, he was led to reflect that he also was 
doomed to die, and to look at death, and judgment, and 
eternity, as immediately before him. He saw what 
perhaps he had admitted a thousand times, but never 
before seriously pondered, that the hour was approach- 
ing which would terminate his connection with earth 
and transmit his spirit to the bar of God ; and he saw 
that he was a sinner unprepared to meet his God. He 
knew that he was then out of Christ, and that if death 
should surprise him in that state, he would be lost for 
ever. So cogent and sharp was the conviction of this 
awful truth, that he forgot his friend's departure from 
life, in the concern he felt for his own salvation ; and 
there was no sleep for him that night. 

The next morning, Mr. Livingston paid him a visit, 
and being ignorant of the circumstances of the case, 
was much affected, upon entering his room, at his 
mournful appearance. The cause of his evident dis- 
tress was immediately inquired, with an air of affec- 
tionate solicitude, that induced him to make a full dis- 
closure of the whole matter; and, when he had related 
his exercises, he earnestly asked, what he must do to 
be saved. Mr. Livingston modestly answered: " That 



RESIDENCE IK HOLLAND. 



107 



he knew him to be well acquainted with the precious 
truths of the Gospel, and * * * informed in what 
way sinners were accepted in .the beloved Saviour ;" 
and feeling, probably, at the moment some little em- 
barrassment, as he had been unprepared for such a 
meeting, he rose from his seat to leave him. But the 
Doctor would not permit him to go yet: "No, my 
dear friend," said he ; " no, you must not leave me ; sit 
down ; you must descend more to particulars. You 
must tell me how a sinner must come to Jesus, and 
what are the peculiar exercises of that repentance and 
faith, which unites the soul to the Divine Eedeemer. It is 
a fact," he added, " that I have studied the doctrines of 
the Gospel. I can explain and vindicate them, and 
you are convinced of my knowledge of the truth ; it 
would be improper in me to deny it. But all this has 
been mere speculation ; it has been all viewed by me 
as an abstract theory. I have been ignorant of the 
spirituality and extent of the Divine Law. I did not 
know who or what a sinner was, nor did I realize that 
I was the man. And now, since these convictions 
have commenced, I find myself, with all my acquired 
knowledge, ignorant and forlorn. I know not what 
I must do, or how to approach a Throne of Grace, any 
more than the most uninformed babe. I must be taught 
what it is to enter into covenant with God my Eedeem- 
er, and what that direct and personal faith is, by which 
the soul is united to Christ, and becomes interested in 
his imputed righteousness for justification and accept- 
ance." 

Being thus importuned to remain, Mr. Livingston 
again took his seat, and attempted to exhibit to him 



108 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



the experience that is involved in genuine conversion 
the nature of evangelical repentance and saving faith, 
and how a sinner under the renewing influence of the 
Spirit of God, is brought to appropriate Christ as his 
sacrifice and righteousness. The Saviour in his ability 
and willingness to save, and the ample encouragements 
of the Gospel to the exercise of a full affiance in his 
merits and grace, were also presented with much clear- 
ness and feeling ; and, under the Divine blessing, the 
Doctor was both enlightened and comforted by this 
plain, spiritual, and affectionate conversation. He 
found peace and joy in believing. At the completion 
of his studies, he entered the ministry ; was called to 
the Church of * * * * ; and, to a good old age, 
was esteemed an exemplary, learned, and useful minis- 
ter of the Gospel. 

Although professed Christians are much divided both 
upon doctrinal points and modes of worship, yet in 
nearly every communion, there are those who have a 
faith which worketh by love, purifieth the heart, and 
overcometh the world, and whose religious experience, 
with all the diversity observable in their creeds and 
forms, involves a singular agreement of views and 
feelings. All genuine believers, of whatever name, have 
a common spiritual discernment, sensibility, which no 
mere spectulative or nominal Christians have or can have. 
This may be denominated, in contradistinction to the 
other evidences of religion, the evidence of the Spirit ; 
and it comes from the children of God of every denomina- 
tion, of every clime, kindred, and tongue. The Holy 
Spirit preserves a uniformity in his saving operations ; 
that is, his operations lead to an experimental know 



RESIDENCE IN HOLLAND. 



109 



ledge, in all the saints, of the same great truths. A 
Variety of circrrmstances may be employed to awaken 
them out of the sleep of sin : but the work begun and 
achieved in them by Divine grace, has the same essen- 
tial characters and bears the same fruits. They are ail 
taught of God — not contrary things, but the same 
things that pertain to salvation. Hence, whether they 
be learned or unlearned — Episcopalians or Presbyte- 
rians — Methodists or Baptists — natives of Europe or 
Asia, of Africa or America, they perfectly understand 
one another upon the cardinal points of Christian ex- 
perience, and, whenever afforded the opportrinity, take 
sweet counsel together as fellow-heirs of the grace of 
life. 

While Mr. Livingston was in Utrecht, a number of 
pious persons, who had almost contemporarily expe- 
rienced a change of heart, and some of whom were 
from different and distant countries, assembled by invi- 
tation, in that city, for the purpose of comparing 
together their views and exercises under the power of 
redeeming grace. He made one of the happy com- 
pany ; and it was to him a most edifying and delight- 
ful conference, the recollection of which he cherished 
as long as he lived. After the Throne of Grace had been 
addressed, and a song of Zion had been sung, a person 
from Asia gave a minute account of the means of his 
conversion, of his contrition for sin, of his reception of 
the Lord Jesus, and of his subsequent enjoyments in the 
Divine life. Then, one from Africa, whose family was 
among the most respectable at the Cape of Good Hope 
told how he was first made sensible of his guilt, and con- 
squent exposure to the wrath of God ; how he had strug- 



110 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



gled against unbelief ; and how at last, lie was made 
willing, in a day of God's power, to accept salvation as 
a free gift in the adorable Eedeemer. Mr. Livingston 
followed next, with a brief statement of what the Lord 
had done for his soul ; and after him, the Countess of 

R , from Europe, detailed her religions exercises. 

" The sum of the whole," says Mr. Livingston in a 
short narrative of this conference, " when compared 
together, exhibited the same teaching, the same views 
and exercises, and the same faith, hope, and love. The 
attending circumstances and first incitements to reli- 
gious impressions were various ; yet the convictions of 
sin and misery, of seeking and obtaining joy and peace 
in believing, of looking unto Jesus, and through him 
coming to the Father, and entering into an everlasting 
covenant with God, as the Eedeemer and God of salva- 
tion, in and through the Son of his love, were exactly 
the same. We all agreed as though we had lived in 
the same neighborhood, and had been, as we really 
were, under one and the same teaching. The company 
was comforted and edified, delighted and elevated. 
Mutual sentiments of fervent love and Christian com- 
munion prevailed ; and sentiments of adoration, hope, 
and thanksgiving were expressed. We testified these 
by singing, at the close of our conference, the 72d 
Psalm, in which, with lively adoration and raised affec- 
tions, we celebrated the extent of our precious Re- 
deemer's kingdom. The sons of mirth," he adds, 
"may enjoy their ribaldry and wine, and infidels scoff 
at the hope of Christians, of which the ignorant 
wretches have no idea ; but they never felt, nor can, 
while they remain unbelievers, what we felt and en- 



/ 



RESIDENCE IN HOLLAND. 



Ill 



joyed upon tliis occasion. I never experienced so 
much, devotion in singing a psalm, nor did I ever ob- 
tain such peculiar confirmation in my former experi- 
ences of the divine teaching, and sanctifying grace.'' 

The Eeformed Dutch Church was the established na- 
tional Church in all the provinces of the United Neth- 
erlands : but, notwithstanding this fact, societies of 
other denominations were liberally tolerated. They 
were permitted to maintain their respective peculiari- 
ties, in doctrine and worship, without fear of molesta- 
tion. "With one of these in the city of Utrecht, a 
church in the Baptist connection, Mr. Livingston, and 
a few of his university companions, were induced to 
celebrate divine service upon a Sabbath afternoon ; and 
before the service was over, they witnessed a mode of 
administering the ordinance of baptism, which most 
American Baptists would pronounce a very unseemly 
and sinful deviation from the common practice of the 
communion. After a most excellent sermon from the 
pastor, a man whose talents, piety, and evangelical 
preaching, had rendered him exceedingly popular in 
the place, three adults came forward and were baptized, 
not by immersion, but upon the principle involved in 
our Lord's rejoinder to Peter, when he had expressed 
a wish to have, besides his feet, his hands and head 
washed, He that is washed needeth not, save to wash Jus 
feet, but is clean every whit, that is, by sprinkling. 

"The ordinance, 7 ' Mr. Livingston observes in his 
notes upon the interesting scene, "was solemnly per- 
formed, and I felt affected and edified. Yet, contrary 
to what I expected, they were not immersed or plunged, 
but sprinkled on the face, in the same way that we ad- 



112 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENBY LIVINGSTON. 



minister that sacrament in our Eeformed Church. I 
knew the Baptists in America differed from us in the 
mode, as well as the subjects of baptism ; that they 
magnified and distorted the question respecting immer- 
sion ; and notwithstanding, excepting themselves, the 
whole Church of Christ, with which compared they 
were very few and small, always practised sprinkling, 
they still maintained that a complete plunging under 
water was essential to the ordinance. Under the im- 
pression that all Baptists entertained the same super- 
stitious and singular sentiment, I was surprised to find 
the contrary in the instance then exhibited. But it is 
a fact, whatever they may profess or perform in Amer- 
ica or in England, that the Baptists on the continent of 
Europe are better informed ; and, while they agree 
with their brethren in relation to the subjects, yet many 
of them do not scruple to administer baptism, as all 
other Christians do, by sprinkling." 

In 17 68, the Eev. Dr. Witherspoon having accepted 
the call of the trustees of Princeton College to preside 
over that venerable institution, previously to his depart- 
ure for America, visited the continent of Europe, for 
the purpose of forming an acquaintance with some of 
the distinguished men of Holland. When he arrived 
at Eotterdam, he wrote to Mr. Livingston, informing 
him of the object of the visit, and requesting the favor 
of being provided by him with suitable lodgings at 
Utrecht. The request was very cheerfully and promptly 
complied with ; and the respectable family, which had 
engaged to accommodate the worthy stranger, received 
him with all politeness, and kindly entertained him 
without charge during his stay in the city. Mr. Liv- 



RESIDENCE IN HOLLAND. 



113 



ingston, ardently desirous that something should be 
done as speedily as possible to effect a reconciliation 
between the two great parties in the Church, (the Coetus 
and Conference.) was disposed to consider the visit of 
x Dr. Witherspoon as an occurrence that might be used 
to further the attainment of that object, and, with this 
impression, approved the general outlines of a plan 
which it was thought would satisfactorily provide for 
the education of her ministry, under the auspices of 
that great and good man, when he should be settled at 
Princeton. It is at least supposed that such was the 
fact ; the grounds upon which the supjoosition rests will 
presently be exhibited. 

The interview between the Doctor and the Professor 
is represented to have been, in a high degree, interest- 
ing and gratifying to both. Their discourse with each 
other was in Latin, and before it ended, " Dr. Wither- 
spoon expressed," says Mr. Livingston, " in the warm- 
est terms, his cordial esteem and veneration for the 
Eeformed Dutch Church, and declared his hojoe and 
expectation, that the two Churches of Holland and 
Scotland would, by their mutual efforts and influence, 
while they still remained two distinct denominations, 
without any public union or blending, powerfully de- 
fend the doctrines of grace, and successfully cooperate 
in promoting the best interests of the Gospel in Ame- 
rica." 

The establishment of a friendly correspondence and 
cooperation was the only union then proposed ; but, 
another of a more important character was soon after 
suggested, by whom, in the first instance, is not known, 
and was seriously meditated, as will appear from the 



114 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



following letter of Dr. Witherspoon to Mr. Livingston, 
dated Paisley, May 12, 1768 : 

" Dear Sir : I was favored with yours of the 27th, 
two days ago, and being just about to depart, have 
only time to thank you for the pains you have taken 
in the affair of the union, and wish it may prosper ; 
though I think some circumstances may be added to 
what you propose, but shall say nothing of it till I hear 
further from you, as you. seem to wish. I pray that 
you may be blessed in your studies, and honored to be 
in due time an active and successful minister of Christ. 
Eemember me kindly to Professor Bonnet, and my 
worthy landlady, who received me in so hospitable a 
manner. 

11 1 am, dear Sir, yours, etc., 

" Jno. Witherspoon." 

To insure success to any plan, which had for its ob- 
ject the accommodation of the existing differences, and 
the formation of independent Classes, in the Dutch 
Church in this country, it was necessary to consult the 
wishes of the ministers in Holland, by making some 
adequate provision for the theological instruction of 
young men .designing to enter the ministry. This 
provision was a favorite point with the transatlantic 
brethren, and in requiring it, they certainly evinced 
a very tender regard to the best interests of the Church ; 
but the question was, what could be done to comply 
with their wishes in this respect. The Coetus party, in 
pursuance of their plan of rendering themselves inde- 
pendent of the Classis of Amsterdam, had adopted 



RESIDENCE IN HOLLAND. 



115 



measures for the erection of an " Academy" in New- 
Jersey, in which pious youth might be educated for the 
ministry, and had already indeed obtained a charter for 
the same, containing nothing, as Mr. Lott, the intelli- 
gent correspondent of Mr. Livingston, mentioned in 
the preceding chapter, observes in a letter dated Sep- 
tember, 1767, " of Ccetus or Confer entie in it. being 
founded on the constitution of the Church of Holland, 
as established in the national Synod of Dort," and 
therefore, likely to make it, as far as such an instrument 
could have influence, a popular institution. (See Ap- 
pendix C.) But there was no one competent or willing 
to undertake the discharge of a professor's duties in this 
academy ; or, if a person fully qualified for the task, 
and inclined to enter upon it, could have been found, 
the trustees, as yet, had no funds for his support. Nay, 
moreover, the same letter states, that it was not then 
determined vshere the academy should be located, and 
that the question had produced a little jealousy and col- 
lision among the trustees, some wishing it to be placed 
at Hackensack, and others at New-Brunswick.* 

* The efforts of the Coetus party, at this time, to establish a theolo- 
gical seminary, led some persons (of the opposite party it is supposed) 
to think of having a divinity-professor in King's College, Xew-York, 
under the sanction of a clause in the charter of that institution, grant- 
ing the privilege to the Dutch Church. The Rev. Mr. Ritzema. a 
staunch Conferentie partisan, and one of the ministers of the Church of 
X ew-York, was then a director of the College : and many of his friends 
expressed a vrish that he should receive the appointment. The Classis 
of Amsterdam, as appears by a letter of one of its members (the Rev. Mr 
Tetterode,) dated in IT 71, was pleased with the plan, and recommended 
its adoption, until a college for the Dutch Church could be erected. It 
subsequently, however, advised that the professor have no connection 
with any literary institution. 



116 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



Knowing these facts, which, made it very improbable 
that the Church here would soon be able to call and 
maintain a professor for herself ; having previously,, as it 
would seem, matured a plan for restoring peace which 
w r anted only a satisfactory article in relation to a profes- 
sor, to render it complete and acceptable to all parties con- 
cerned ; acquainted, too, with the high character of Dr. 
Witherspoon, as a scholar and divine, it is not surpris- 
ing that Mr. Livingston, in his zeal, should either have 
proposed or acceded to an arrangement, intended per- 
haps to be merely provisional, and promising such im- 
mediate and incalculable benefits. It does not appear 
that a union of the Dutch and Presbyterian Churches 
was even thought of, much less designed ; but, that a 
certain connection was to be formed with Princeton Col- 
lege, simply with a view to the preparation of pious 
youth of the Dutch Church for the ministry, under the 
superintendence of a man in whose talents, piety, and 
orthodoxy, the Church, both at home and abroad, would 
have the most entire confidence. 

That this was the project in embryo, a few extracts 
from the letters of Mr. Livingston's friend to him upon 
the subject will clearly show. " At present," says Mr. 
Lott, in a letter of November, 1768, "from a superfi- 
cial view of the plan you mention, it appears to me, it 
will meet with difiiculty and objections from both parties. 
For I know them so well, that I think I may venture 
to prophesy, that as long as their present spirit of 
power and dominion remains with them, no plan will 
be accepted, however reasonable and useful the same 
may be, unless the different congregations have good 
sense enough to agree, whether their ministers will or 
will not," 



BESIDENCE IN" HOLLAND. 



117 



In another of December, of the same year, after 
stating that the Bev. Mr. Kitzema had shown him a 
Dutch letter, which that gentleman had received from 
Mr. Livingston, communicating the outlines of the 
plan, the same correspondent adds: " The matter being 
still new to me, I can not see how it can possibly take 
place. For, in the first place, I believe that the Confe- 
rentie and Coetus will never unite, their difference being 
of such a nature that they dare not trust each other, 
and thus a junction [is] morally impossible : and in the 
next place, I can't see how a local junction can be brought 
about with the Presbyterians, even should the jarring 
Dutch Churches agree." 

To provide a suitable professor for the proposed 
academy, as it was then denominated, Mr. Livingston 
had, prior to the visit of Dr. Witherspoon to Holland, 
prevailed upon a number of liberal individuals there to 
pay the expense of educating a poor youth of piety 
and talents, and of Dutch descent, if one should come 
from America, for the purpose of being qualified for 
the station, and had accordingly written to his friends 
in New- York, requesting them to select and send over 
a youth of this description. No better expedient 
could probably have been devised to supply a defi- 
ciency which, while it remained, would prevent the 
accomplishment of his wishes to make peace ; but the 
contemplated connection with Princeton College, being 
in his view, a preferable expedient, he dispatched a let- 
ter, as soon as it was agreed upon, revoking the request 
he had make. In reference to the contents of this let- 
ter, his friend observes: 46 As I am afraid that your 
favorite plan will not take place, at least so soon as 



118 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 

you seem to expect, let me recommend to you again to 
keep your Christian friends to their word about main- 
taining a poor boy. We help to maintain a poor but 
sprightly and good boy, at a grammar-school, in hopes 
of his finishing his studies in Holland, as you proposed, 
and should be sorry to be disappointed of our expecta- 
tions." 

Under date of March the 28th, 1769, the same per- 
son writes, that letters had been received from the 
Classis of Amsterdam, " directed to the Coetus and 
Conferentie respectively, informing them of the sub- 
stance of the plan laid by them before the Synod, for 
accommodating the differences and healing the breach 
caused in the American Church by the contending par- 
ties." After noticing the conduct of the leaders of each 
party, upon the receipt of the classical letter, (and 
from the statement made, it would appear that those of 
the Conferentie, with the exception of Mr. Eysdyck, 
being violently opposed to the plan ; had prepared . an 
answer without consulting the Elders of the churches ; 
and that those of the Coetus, with more prudence and 
respect, before drawing up their answer, had endeavored 
to ascertain the general opinion in relation to the plan, 
by means of a circular letter, he adds : "As far as I can 
find, the whole Coetus, with all their heart, (as I imagine 
they will write the Classis,) as well as all the leading mem- 
bers of our Church, will cheerfully agree to the plan, ex- 
cept to that part which relates to the Local Union with 
Princeton College ; as it is apprehended much mischief 
would arise to our cause from a union with that or any 
other college, at this present time. And the plan pro- 
posed by the Classis (if the parties will but unite) can 



RESIDENCE IX HOLLAND, 



119 



as well be carried into execution without that union 
as with." 

In another letter, dated June, 1769, lie has the fol- 
lowing paragraph : " Our Consistory wrote their senti- 
ments to the Eev. Classis of Amsterdam, on the 11th 
of May, about the difference between the Conferentie 
and Coetus, and gave them to understand that if the 
former were as much, disposed to make peace as the 
latter, the matter would be soon settled. The principal 
objection against the proposed plan, is the local junc- 
tion with Nassau-Hall, in Princeton, almost every body 
judging it best that we join neither that college nor the 
one in this city. This is the opinion of our congrega- 
tion." 

These extracts show the foundation of the supposi- 
tion that the union alluded to in the letter of Dr. TYith- 
erspoon, was to be of a collegial kind, or to give to the 
institution over which he expected to preside, and more 
particularly to himself, as an approved divine, for a 
time, or until the Church could have a professor of her 
own, the education of such of her sons as had the min- 
istry in view. And though the article relating to this 
union was opposed with some zeal, yet it is not impro- 
bable that if the Classis had directed all the churches 
to meet and deliberate in convention upon the subject, 
the plan, as submitted, or at least in a modified form, 
would have been adopted and had the desired effect. 
That order, however, was not given, and the sense of 
the Church, therefore, was but partially taken, and the 
answers transmitted to the Classis being upon most points 
at variance with each other, nothing more was done for 
the present. 



120 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



Mr. Livingston had cherished sanguine expectations 
of the success of this plan, which had been referred to 
the Church with the approbation of the Synod of North 
Holland ; but God saw fit to disappoint them, in order 
to give him at some future day, as the reward of his 
benevolent zeal, a more interesting agency in the re- 
conciliation of his divided brethren, and to put him in 
the honorable place which he had sought so actively 
for another person. It need only be added here that 
the acquaintance which he and Dr. Witherspoon formed 
with each other in Holland, led to the cultivation of a 
warm and lasting friendship between them. 

About the same time, the church of New- York, as 
the building called the North Church was nearly com- 
pleted, and it was evident that Dr. Laidlie alone could 
not render all the service which would be needed, 
when that building should be opened for public 
worship, began to think of calling another English 
preacher. 

In anticipation of this emergency, Dr. Laidlie and 
some prominent members of the Church, who had be- 
come intimate friends of Mr. Livingston, during the 
winter he spent with them antecedently to his de- 
parture for Holland, had long been inclined towards 
him as a person possessing the qualities desirable 
in a pastor. This inclination being confirmed by the 
intelligence from time to time received respecting 
him, they did not hesitate to express their predilec- 
tion in his favor. A number of the congregation 
would have been gratified, if a call had been imme- 
diately made out and forwarded, as his licensure was 
expected soon to take place; but there were some 



RESIDENCE EST HOLLAND, 



121 



-who wished to see or hear first an account of his 
pulpit talents, and others who thought it would be 
rather indiscreet to call him before he had returned ; not 
that they questioned his piety or ministerial gift, but 
because they considered it proper that they should have 
an opportunity of judging for themselyes of his qua- 
lifications for. so important a station, and chiefly because ' 
they apprehended that his voice would be too feeble to 
fill their large places of worship. 

"While the known weakness of his voice and delicacy 
of his health, were producing this diversity of senti- 
ment in the congregation about the call, one or two of 
his most devoted friends felt considerable uneasiness on 
another account. They had lately discovered that he 
was averse to the observance of the holy days, as they 
were denominated, and knowing that the conduct of 
Dr. Laidlie with respect to them, had given offense,* 
while the discovery remained icith them a profound 
secret, they could not forbear to transmit to him forth- 
with, some plain but friendly and affectionate counsel 
upon the subject. The one,f after a few remarks 
designed to show the duty and necessity of conforming 
to this usage of the Church, and made apparently in a 
proper spirit, reminds him of the Apostle Paul, who 
became all things to all men, that he might win some. 
The otherj uses more freedom, and says, in a letter 
dated Nov. 1768 : "I can not avoid telling you that we 
differ very much about them, and it gives me real 

* Dr. Laidlie, it seems, had denied the obligation of these days, and 
though he usually preached upon them, would take other subjects than 
those selected for them by the Church of Holland. 

f Mr. D. Brinkerhoff. X Abraham Lott. 

6 



122 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



inward concern to find that yon stand affected to them 
in the manner yon mention. Pray, my dear sir, are 
you then, such a stranger to the people of the Dutch 
Church of this city, as to imagine that the sticklers for 
those days are only to be found among those who 
speak Dutch? * . * * Believe me, my friend, 
although a Paul w as to attempt to shake them off, he 
would not succeed. Let me advise you as a friend, 
who has a regard for you, who wishes you well, that 
you entirely stifle your sentiments about this matter, 
and never mention them again, especially if you have 
any thoughts of becoming (as I pray God you may) a 
minister among us." And in a letter of a later date, 
he endeavors to defend the observance of these days 
with some little zeal. "You say they are rather 
wicked or devilish days, than holy days; very true: 
but would the neglect of preaching on those days lessen 
the wickedness practised on them ? I say no. For 
by leaving off preaching, the days would not be abol- 
ished (as this can not be done without the intervention 
of the Legislature) but left more at large to practise vice 
***■■*. This then being the case, it is undoubt- 
edly best to preach as usual, as it certainly keeps a 
great many people who will not work, but come to 
church, out of the way of mischief. And therefore, if 
you have any regard for yourself, for your Church, and 
for the advice of one who thinks himself your friend, 
conform to the established customs and rules of the 
Church * * ; and however much I approve of your 
consulting Mr. Laidlie about other matters, relating to 
the good of the Church, I can by no means approve of 
your advising with him in matters wherein he stands, 
in my opinion, wrongly affected." 



RESIDENCE IX HOLLAND. 



123 



Mr. Livingston replied, to the full satisfaction of this 
gentleman. 

As the Church was situated at the time, and while 
the laws of the colony, then under the Britsh govern- 
ment, recognized these days as holy, to observe them in 
conformity to established custom, was not only prudent 
conduct but truly a Christian duty ; and Mr. Livingston, 
in yielding to the wishes of his friends, acted a very 
commendable part. It evinced a disposition to make 
any reasonable sacrifice for the sake of promoting the 
peace and prosperity of a Church, which had already 
suffered much from the violence of intestine disputes, 
and in which there were yet those who keenly watched 
the opportunity to excite some new controversy. It in- 
volved no abandonment or concession of principle, 
inasmuch as it was distinctly understood, that these 
days were not believed to be of Divine appointment, 
and would be observed simply to prevent evil, and 
edify the congregation. The 67th explanatory article 
of the old constitution of the Church expressly declares, 
" that the Eeformed Church does not believe the days, 
usually called holy days, are of Divine institution, or by 
preaching on those days, intends any thing more than to 
prevent evil, and promote the edification of the people, 
is evident from the contents of the 53d article of the 
Synod of Dordrecht, held in the year 1574." This 
article is in these words : " With regard to feast days, 
upon which, besides the Lord's day, it has been custom- 
ary to abstain from labor, and to assemble in the 
Church, it is resolved that we must be contented with 
the Lord's day alone. The usual subjects, however, of 
the birth of Christ, of his resurrection, and sending of 



124 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 

the Holy Spirit, may be handled, and the people be 
admonished, that these feast days are abolished." In 
the new constitution adopted in the year 1882, nothing 
whatever is said upon the subject — ministers and con- 
sistories apparently being left to their own discretion 
in regard to it. 

On the 28th of December, 1768, in compliance with 
the request of more than a hundred members of the 
congregation, the Consistory convened to receive a 
petition praying they would look out for another 
English preacher, and intimating that the petitioners 
would be gratified with the invitation of Mr. Living- 
ston. They unanimously resolved that they would 
endeavor to ascertain whether a sufficient sum of 
money could be raised to warrant the procedure so- 
licited, and directed a subscription paper to be pre- 
pared for the purpose. The friend, (Mr. Lott) who 
advised him of these preparatory measures, thus 
concludes the account: " Almost everybody I have 
heard, seems well pleased that you should be called, and 
so they appear to be with every part of your character. 
All they fear is, whether you will have voice enough 
for our church ; for if you have not, say they, we are 
undone ; what shall we do with a minister who can not 
be heard throughout the church ? I could, therefore, 
heartily wish that you may for some time past have 
exercised your voice in the pulpit, as I am convinced 
it may be there much modelled and improved. And 
if it is strong enough, can't you get one or more of 
your friends to give a certificate about it, and inclose it 
to me? Much good may come from such a step." 

By a letter from the same person, dated April 1, 



RESIDENCE IX HOLLAND. 



125 



1769, it appears that the Consistory had the day be- 
fore resolved to call Mr. Livingston ; and that the call, 
when made out, was to be sent to some ministers in 
Amsterdam, with particular instructions not to deliver 
it, unless they were well assured that he had sufficient 
strength of voice to fill a large building. In another 
letter, written the following June, he says : " Our 
third, or rather North. Church, was opened for Divine 
service by Mr. Laidlie, on the 25th ult., (May,) by a 
very pathetic discourse from John 4th and 23d, show- 
ing wherein the true Gospel doctrine consists ; in which 
he approved himself very much to the satisfaction of 
all who heard him, and particularly to our Governor, 
who honored us with his presence on that occasion. 
Mr. Laidlie now preaches three times every Sunday ; 
to wit : in the morning and evening in the New, and 
in the afternoon in the North Church, to which, if we 
add his catechising, you will agree his labors must be 
weighty. You can not, therefore, be surprised to hear 
our call to you to come over to our Macedonia to help 
us. May the ever-blessed Jesus make your way pros- 
perous to us, and may you come among us with a full 
blessing of the everlasting covenant !" 

Having finished his studies at the university, Mr. 
Livingston appeared before the Classis of Amsterdam, 
on the 5th June, 1769, to be examined for licensure, 
and the evidence given of his personal piety, and of his 
acquirements, literary and theological, being satisfac- 
tory he became a candidate for the ministry, or what 
is called in Holland, a proponent. His first sermon he 
preached in the Dutch language, for the Rev. Mr. Yan 
Tssum, his examiner in the Classis, at Hilversum, a 
village to the east of Amsterdam. 



126 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



Soon afterwards-, lie preached again in Dutch, at 
Purmerend, a small city in North. Holland ; in English 
in the English Church in Amsterdam ; and again in 
English in the Scotch Church in Kotterdam, probably 
in the same building in which his distinguished ances- 
tor had often proclaimed the glad tidings of salvation. 

This commencement of his public labors was of a 
very promising character. Enjoying, in no common 
degree, the confidence and esteem of numerous Christ- 
ian friends, as a young man experimentally acquainted 
with the power of Divine grace with intellectual 
powers and attainments much above mediocrity ; with 
a voice greatly improved by the attention he had 
paid to his modulation, and susceptible of the richest 
intonations ; with a manner peculiarly interesting and 
solemn, he made by these early efforts in the pulpit a 
very favorable impression. Of the opinion formed of 
his talents as a preacher, and of his qualifications for 
the situation to which he was invited, this fact is evi- 
dence enough, that in about a month after he was licensed, 
the call was put into his hands by the gentlemen who 
were conditionally charged with its delivery. 

Expecting to remain yet some time in Holland, 
and thinking that it might be of considerable ad- 
vantage to him to be able to produce, when he should 
return to America, what was then regarded as a valu- 
able testimonial of proficiency in theology, he con- 
's* Among the letters and notes addressed to him about this time, by 
his Holland friends, there is one containing a postscript in these words : 
"Mrs.* * * * * * expresses her most friendly regards for the 
good Mr. Livingston ;" — a familiar way, it would seem, of speaking of 
him, that shows the high estimation in which his piety was held. 



RESIDENCE IN HOLLAND. 



127 



eluded to present himself before the theological facul- 
ty of the University of Utrecht, a candidate for the 
degree of Doctor of Divinity. It was not a matter 
of course for that university to confer honorary degrees ; 
and the distinction now sought could be obtained only 
by submitting to a severe ordeal. He must be exam- 
ined and reexamined, and after being sifted by the 
learned Faculty for a whole day, must produce and 
defend the next day, against the adverse arguments 
of the professors, two short discourses, the subjects of 
which are to be selected for him, the one from the Old 
Testament, and the other from the New. And he must 
answer, and write, and defend, altogether in the Latin 
language. Nor is this all, another dissertation is then 
to be prepared, and published in Latin, which he must 
publicly support before the whole university. 

Though by no means a person of the firmest nerve, 
Mr. Livingston ventured these formidable trials, and 
having passed the first with approbation, was permitted 
to prepare for the second. Accordingly, in the course 
of the next winter, he wrote a dissertation upon the 
Sinai covenant (" De Foedere Sinaitico,") and sent it to 
the press. But he was now about to leave a country 
in which he had spent many happy hours, and formed 
many tender connections ; and the thought of separat- 
ing from his beloved friends, the anxiety attending his 
preparations for a return, and possibly, too, some little 
dread of the public exhibition itself, produced a depres- 
sion of spirits, that he could not shake off, and led him 
to abandon his design of appearing before the univer- 
sity. Under the influence of his present feelings, he 
suddenly stopped the printing of his dissertation, when 



128 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 

he had received the first proof, and commenced a hasty 
travel to visit his friends in different places, for the 
last time, and bid them an affectionate adieu. 

From his notes of the incidents of this period it would 
appear that he went first to Amsterdam, chiefly for the 
purpose of applying for ordination. The Classis met 
on the 2d of April, and at this meeting, they approved 
his call,* invested him with the ministerial office, and 
consigned him to the church of New- York. This im- 
portant business done, he began in earnest the perform- 
ance of the painful duty which the prospect of his de- 
parture, as not far off, imposed upon him ; and while 
at Eotterdam thus engaged, he received a letter from an 
Amsterdam friend, censuring his conduct in relation to 
the theological degree, and strongly urging him to the 
final step necessary to its acquisition. 

That Mr. Livingston had no ambition, or that he was 
not at all desirous of distinction, nor gratified when it 
was bestowed, is not pretended. We have no wish to 
represent him in this Memoir, as free from the weak- 
nesses of human nature ; but while he had his share of 
these, grace reigned in his heart, and when he endeav- 
ored to advance his reputation, he did so rather to 
extend his usefulness in the Church than to gratify a 
self-seeking disposition. He had a tender conscience, 
he was afraid of sin and of the very appearance of 
sin; and when he came to the conclusion of the 
letter, as he read the following quotation of Scrip- 
ture, u Therefore to him that knoweth to do good 

* Another call was presented to him from one of the churches in 
Amsterdam, but as it was not his intention to remain in Holland, the 
call was respectfully declined. 



RESIDENCE IN HOLLAND. 



129 



and doeth it not, to him it is sin" the impression was 
irresistible, that he would be chargeable with culpable 
neglect, seeing he was apparently so near the attain- 
ment of the object, if he now relinquished it ; for the 
degree, as before hinted, possessed at that day, in the 
estimation of the Church, all the importance he attached 
to it. He accordingly determined to follow the advice 
given, and set upon preparing without delay, an 
abridgment of his dissertation for the press. Devoting 
his mornings to the work, and what he had previously 
written being fresh in his mind, he accomplished it with 
ease, during the few days he spent at Eotterdam and 
the Hague, in making farewell visits ; and upon his 
return to Utrecht, he had it printed. But the business 
was not yet finished, the severest task — one which 
would put his merits fully to the test — was still to be 
performed. He must defend his little pamphlet against 
learned and well-practised disputants, before a large as- 
sembly, consisting of the professors and regents of the 
University, and many other eminent personages. 

The interesting and decisive day at length arrived. 
It was the 16th day of May, 1770 ; and Mr. Living- 
ston was then just twenty -four years of age. The as- 
sembly convened at -the appointed hour, a band of music 
attended, and much splendid ceremony was observed 
upon the occasion — enough, indeed, to appal the courage 
of any candidate for distinction. Several learned gen- 
tlemen controverted some of the positions advanced in 
his dissertation, but he successfully maintained them ; 
and the disputation which was in the Latin language, 
and lasted .nearly two hours, affording sufficient evi- 
dence of his erudition, the professors conferred upon 

6* 



130 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



him, with the usual forms, the degree of Doctor of Theo 
logy. The diploma he received is signed by Meino/rdus 
Tydeman, Eector, and Franciscus Burmannus, Doctor 
and Professor of Sacred Theology. 

Having now accomplished his wish, and completed 
all the necessary preparations for his departure, Doc- 
tor Livingston took leave of Holland, and embarked 
at Helvetsluijs, for England, about the 1st of June, 
1770. Upon his arrival at Harwich, to which place 
the passage had been a quick and agreeable one, he im- 
mediately passed up to London, and there tarried with 
Mr. John Harrison, a respectable merchant of that 
city, with whom he had occasionally corresponded, and 
who had politely invited him to his house. 

He availed himself of his short stay in England to 
visit Oxford, and was introduced to Doctor Benjamin 
Kennicott, the celebrated Hebrew scholar, then engaged 
in that stupendous work to which biblical criticism is 
so much indebted — the collation of Hebrew manu- 
scripts. The Doctor had the honor of breakfasting with 
this learned and indefatigable Hebraist, and of being 
taken, after the repast, into the chamber where his amaz- 
ing labors were performed. He had been already ten 
years employed in the preparation of his Bible, and was 
now only about half through it. "He showed me," 
says the Doctor, u several of his most admired manu- 
scripts. The manner in which he proceeded was, to 
take one line from Yan Der Hooght's Bible, which he 
considered to be the most correct copy of the Hebrew 
text, and paste that line upon the top of a page of a 
blank folio book, and then, under that line, to write all 
the variations which his manuscripts furnish in that 
line. 



RESIDENCE IN HOLLAND. 



131 



This visit could not soon be forgotten ; but a most 
gratifying memorial of it, in tlie hand-writing of 
that distinguished man, was obtained before they 
parted. In the Doctor's Album, which contains a 
variety of little sententious pieces in Greek and Latin 
and Dutch, with the names of Bonnet, Burmannus, 
Eavius, Tydeman, Vanderkemp, Elsnerus, and other 
eminent literati of Holland, underwritten, there are a 
few lines in Hebrew characters, beautifully formed, and 
accompanied with this sign-manual — 

BEN J: KEXXICOTT, 
E Coll: Exon: Oxon. 

Doctor Livingston remained about a month in Eng- 
land. He then sailed from Falmouth for New- York, 
where, having been preserved during a long absence, 
under the shadow of the wings of a good God, he 
safely arrived on the 3d clay of September, 1770. 



132 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



CHAPTEE VL 

FROM HIS RETURN TO NEW- YORK, TILL THE CLOSE OF 
THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR. 

a.d. mo-ms. 

It was on a Sabbath morning that Dr. Livingston 
reached the city of New- York. The peace and sacred- 
ness of God's day well accorded with his own feelings 
and with those of every pious member of the Church, 
and afforded an immediate opportunity for the devout 
and suitable expression of them in the sanctuary of the 
Lord. He had returned, by the favor of Heaven, with 
health restored, as a messenger of the Gospel of Peace, 
bearing to a numerous and respectable flock the tender 
and solemn relation of a pastor. It was a season, 
therefore, of holy joy and thanksgiving; and, on ac- 
count of many interesting recollections, which could 
not but be associated with it, as well as the new and 
mutual responsibilities to which it introduced him and 
all his friends, the first interview must have been very 
affecting. The succeeding Sabbath, he preached in the 
Middle Church, in Nassau street, to a large and atten- 
tive auditory, from 1 Cor. 1 : 22, 23, 24 — For the Jews 



SETTLEMENT IN NEW-YORK. 



133 



require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom : but we 
preach Christ crucified, unto the Jeius a stumbling-block, 
and unto the Greeks foolishness ; but unto them which are 
called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and 
the icisdom of God ; and having delivered this intro- 
ductory sermon, he was then acknowledged, in a suita- 
ble manner, by the Eev. Messrs. Ritzema and De 
Ronde, and Dr. Laidlie and the Consistory, as one of 
the ministers of the Reformed Dutch Church of New- 
York. 

Dr. Livingston commenced the discharge of his 
pastoral duties with great diligence and zeal. He 
assumed at once a full share of pulpit and parochial 
labors ; preaching regularly twice on the Sabbath, 
making visits among the people, and attending two, and 
sometimes three, catechetical exercises every week, an 
amount of service which few young men, under similar 
circumstances, would have had the courage to undertake, 
and fewer still the ability satisfactorily to fulfill. But 
though just settled in a populous city, where interrup- 
tions to study, and those not always of a professional 
nature, are numerous and unavoidable ; though con- 
nected with a large congregation whose situation was a 
little peculiar ; provided with few sermons, and asso- 
ciated with colleagues of established character, as judi- 
cious and able preachers, he did not hesitate to attempt 
his part, and he performed it to general acceptance. 
The fervor of pious feeling which he uniformly mani- 
fested, both in and out of the pulpit ; his affectionate, 
dignified, and prudent deportment; and the style of 
his preaching, novel, yet plain and forcible, admirably 
calculated to engage attention, to alarm the consciences 



184 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



of sinners, and particularly to comfort and build up 
believers in faith and holiness, rendered him highly 
beloved and popular. His labors, if arduous and 
weighty, were pleasant. Blessed with a number of godly 
and devoted friends, who sincerely and constantly 
prayed for him, and by various little attentions or 
expressions of kind solicitude, encouraged without flat- 
tering him, he was cheered and sustained in his work. 
Blessed, too, with a coadjutor (Dr. Laidlie) who was 
well acquainted with the state of the congregation and 
who was, at any time, ready to afford him all the coun- 
sel and assistance in his power, he toiled with alac- 
rity, and his reputation and usefulness daily increased. 

It was necessary that he should apply himself closely 
to study, and he did so; he read and thought, and 
wrote with scarce any intermission, excepting what 
was requisite for attending to other important duties 
of his station. At the beginning of his ministry, he 
wrote his sermons in full, and committed them to 
memory ; but finding his health to be affected by such 
severe labor, he afterwards accustomed himself to 
preach from fall notes, or what he called "a copious 
analysis." 

This mode of preaching gave a freer scope for the 
exercise of his powers : it was exactly suited to his pe- 
culiar gifts ; and often the amplitude of his intellect- 
ual views was so striking, the tenderness of his deliv- 
ery so great, and his whole manner in the pulpit so 
impressive, that he was heard with the deepest attention 
and delight. Pious and judicious persons considered 
him a preacher of first-rate excellence, and he soon 
acquired by his public ministrations, by the habitual 



SETTLEMENT IN NEW-YORK. 



135 



suavity of his manners in private intercourse, and by 
his unwearied exertions to do good at all times and 
in all places, an influence which is rarely possessed by 
one so young in the service of his Master. 

This high standing in the Church contributed great- 
ly to the ultimate success of his endeavors to carry the 
plan that had been devised for promoting the general 
welfare of the Church. Soon after his settlement in 
New- York, he sought, with his characteristic prudence 
and zeal, to bring about a reconciliation between the 
Ccetus and Conferentie parties ; an object which, as the 
reader has seen, lay, for years before, very near his heart, 
and which he had attempted, but in vain, to accom- 
plish when he was in Holland. The circumstance of 
his having been educated abroad, his present connection 
with the Church of New-York, which had happily, at 
no time, taken a part in the great controversy, and his 
distinguished reputation, gained him, in a little while, 
an extensive acquaintance among the ministers of both 
parties, and consequently many opportunities of calling 
their attention to the subject. These opportunities, 
whenever presented, he failed not to improve. As an 
evidence of his assiduity in this work, and also of his 
pious friendship for his colleague, a letter which he 
wrote the following June, while he was paying a short 
visit to his friends at Poughkeepsie, is here inserted : 

"My Dearest Colleague and Brother m Christ : 

<{ With pleasure I converse with you, though at such 
a distance ; past times seem to recur to my mind, when, 
at a greater distance, I expressed my love to you in 
this way. The Lord has been with me since I left you. 



136 MEMOIR OF JOHN" HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



On the water it was tedious, on account of the number 
of passengers, I arrived home on Friday P.M., being 
48 hours on the water. A kind providence to my 
whole family gives me fresh opportunity to rejoice in 
the goodness of the Lord. Last Sunday A.M., I 
preached here, and was much assisted to speak of Jesus 
and salvation through his merits. I thought much of 
our Church in New- York the whole day, (as indeed 
every day that is much on my heart,) and especially 
sympathized with my dear Laidlie ; my prayers were 
for you, that God would support and bless you. The 
country air, the new amusements, and caresses of near 
relations, have refreshed both soul and body. I feel 
cheerful and hearty, and am convinced that it is neces- 
sary sedentary persons should now and then take tours 
of this kind. When I am walking among the trees, 
and ascend a hill, or gain from any little eminence a 
fine extended prospect, I draw in the wholesome air, 
and am apt to say — 1 Man was made to live in the 
country, to trace the footsteps of his Maker's power 
and wisdom in the vegetable world.' Nothing certain- 
ly but the pleasures and superior advantages of society, 
can compensate for the loss of those pleasures which 
the country affords superior to the town. The more I 
am refreshed in my present situation, the more I wish 
to have you with me, a partaker in these rural delights. 
This, however, I know to be impossible ; but shall in- 
sist, on my return, that you take the same tour, as soon 
as your family and circumstances will permit your 
leaving home, whilst your health and cheerfulness add 
to my own. 

" What conversation I have already had with some of 



SETTLEMENT EST NEW-YOKK. 



137 



the partisans in the Dutch churches, I will communi- 
cate to you when I return to town. That bitter spirit, 
which has so much prevailed, begins to subside, and it 
is the general sentiment that something must be done 
in order to open the way for that regular establishment 
so necessary for the education of youths for the minis- 
try. As I have scarce time to write this letter in haste, 
I shall refer this to a conversation. You know the 
love I have for yourself will make your sentiments 
always weighty with me. 

"I never feel how much I love you, as when I am 
absent from you. The Lord be with you, and give 
you what, as a father, he knows to be best. 

M Your most affectionate Friend and Brother, 

"June 11, 1771. J. H. L." 

It was stated in the last chapter, that articles of union 
had been referred to the parties respectively, by the 
Olassis of Amsterdam ; and that in consequence of its 
being proposed in them to form a connection with 
Princeton College, and of the neglect of the Classis to 
order a convention of the churches to deliberate upon 
the plan, the reference had proved abortive. 

Subsequently, and but a short time before the Doc- 
tor came back to his native country, the Classis was 
appointed by the Synod of North-Holland, through 
his influence with that body, a committee, with plenary 
power to do whatever they might judge would be con- 
ducive to the interests of the American Church ; and 
oetween the clerical members of the Classis and the 
Doctor, there existed a perfect understanding in rela- 
tion to the plan which should be offered to the consid- 



188 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



eration of his brethren. This plan, thus privately ap- 
proved, it is probable was the old one new-shaped, the 
obnoxious article mentioned above being omitted ; or 
it embraced the same cardinal principles, which there 
was reason to believe would be generally viewed as 
constituting a suitable basis for a union of parties. 

The Doctor now found, upon conferring with pious 
and influential men of both parties, as he observes in 
the paragraph of his letter just quoted, that the bitter 
spirit, which had so much prevailed, had begun to sub- 
side, and that a desire for the adoption of some project 
that would give satisfaction to all concerned, appeared 
to be cherished ; he, therefore, ventured to hint at one. 
He did not at once exhibit that which he had provided, 
but endeavored first to learn the sentiments of those 
with whom he conversed, with respect to the great ob- 
jects it contemplated, and then to remove objections, 
if any were made, in order to prepare the way for its 
acceptance. 

By this prudent procedure, he soon became convinced 
that the articles in his possession would be favorably 
received by the Church, and that it was expedient to 
adopt some measure, for the purpose of laying them 
formally before it. He accordingly suggested to his 
Consistory, that as they had not engaged on either side 
of the unhappy dispute, their influence could probably 
procure a general convention, and proposed that letters, 
stating the object in view — requesting the attendance 
of every minister belonging to the church, and of one 
elder from every congregation, and fixing the time and 
place of meeting, should be forthwith dispatched in 
their name. The Consistory promptly complied with 



SETTLEMENT IN NEW-YORK. 



139 



his wishes, and in the following October, the conven- 
tion was held at New- York. 

The minutes of the body are headed "Acts of the 
Eeverend Assembly of Ministers and Elders of the Be- 
formed Low Dutch Churches in the Provinces of New- 
York and New- Jersey, convened in the city of Xew- 
York, on the loth, 16th, 17th, and 18th days of Oct., 
1771, at the friendly request of the Eev. Consistory of 
New-York, for the purpose of procuring peace and 
unity to said Churches." And the first article, which 
relates to the arrival and introduction of the members, 
is in part in these words : " The Eev. Brethren having 
arrived and being convened, were solemnly welcomed 
by the Eev. John H. Livingston, S.S.T.D., and Min- 
uter in New- York. After the delivery of an appropri- 
ate sermon by the Eev. Mr. De Eonde, who had been 
appointed by the Consistory to preach at the opening 
of the Assembly, the Eev. Dr. John H. Livingston, 
minister in New- York, as present Proeses of the concili- 
ating Consistory of New- York, and with the knowledge 
and approbation of his Eev. Colleagues, was chosen 
President.'' 

The Assembly then appointed a committee, consisting 
of two ministers and two elders of the Eev Coetus, two 
ministers and two elders of the Eev. Conferentie, and 
two ministers and two elders from the neutral churches 
of New- York and Albany, to prepare a formula of 
union ; and when the committee met to attend to this 
business, the Doctor disclosed the plan which had been 
digested and prepared in Holland, and which his breth- 
ren there had agreed that he should submit to the 
Church in this country. (See Appendix D.) The com- 
mittee examined it with great care, and having made a 

I 



140 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENKY LIVINGSTON. 



few slight additions and changes, resolved to report it 
to the Assembly. The Assembly approved it without 
a dissentient voice, with the understanding, that before 
it should be finally adopted, or be considered as having 
the binding power of a compact, it should be referred to 
the judgment of the Classis of Amsterdam. The prime 
mover in the whole matter, it is probable, first sug- 
gested the propriety of such a reference, and it was a 
masterly stroke of policy, displaying the wisdom of the 
serpent along with the harmlessness of the.dove. While 
on the one hand, the Coetus brethren were gratified 
with the recognition of principles for which they had 
long been contending, the pride of the Conferentie, on 
the other, was no less gratified with the proposed re- 
ference, as it fully accorded with their principle that 
the Classis of Amsterdam had a paramount and decisive 
authority over the concerns of the American Church. 

It was a measure admirably adapted to the prepos- 
sessions of both parties, and could hardly fail to satisfy 
them ; and, that such was the result is evident from 
the ^concluding article, which reads thus : " After giving 
each other.the right hand of fellowship, the committee, 
as also the reverend Consistory of New-York, were 
openly and formally thanked for their friendly and 
brotherly services ; and, after fervent thanksgiving to 
God for this unexpected blessing, accompanied with ar- 
dent supplications to the throne of grace for a further 
completion of this holy union work, as also for the 
prosperity and well-being of the Church, they parted in 
peace and love and joy. 

(Signed) "John H. Livingston, Proeses, 
Isaac Kysdyk, Scriba, 
Eilaedus Westeelo, Scriba" 



SETTLEMENT IN NEW- YORK. 



141 



This Convention haying proceeded as far in the busi- 
ness as was then deemed advisable, adjourned to meet 
again the next October ; and in the mean time, what 
they had already done with so much harmony and good 
feeling, had a gradual and salutary operation in purging 
out the old leaven, and diffusing a spirit of forbearance 
and love through the Church. To present a specimen 
of these wholesome effects, a part of a letter from the 
Eev. Jacobus Rutsen Hardexbergh (afterwards 
President of Queen's College, New-Brunswick, N. J. — 
See Appendix F.) to Dr. Livingston, dated Raritan, 
July 21, 1772, must be given. " 1 have the satisfaction 
to inform you that the Monday after I returned home, 
my Consistory at the North Branch had a meeting 
with the anti-consistory in that congregation. We 
found them exceedingly friendly, and well disposed for 
peace. In less than half an hour, we settled all our 
disputes. Our Consistory elected two from among their 
party — one for an Elder, and another for a Deacon — 
with which they seemed very well satisfied, and upon 
that dropped their Consistory, or thus united the two 
into one. Here I hope have ended, in less than half 
an hour, tedious, perplexing, and pernicious disputes, 
which have subsisted in these congregations for above 
fifteen years past. Blessed be God, that my eyes have 
beheld the healing of this breach in our Church, before 
I have been gathered to my fathers." 

Pursuant to adjournment, the Convention assembled 
in October, 1772, and the letter of Classis, officially cer- 
tifying that the plan of union had been approved by 
them, was laid before it. Every member then sub- 
scribed the articles, and the good work was thus for- 
mally consummated. 



142 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



This event proved a most auspicious one for the 
Dutch Church in America, and the distinguished 
agency of Dr. Livingston," as the original projector, and 
the prayerful, prudent, and persevering promoter of the 
union, will be held in grateful and honorable remem- 
brance while the Church exists. There were others 
who zealously cooperated with him in this difficult and 
weighty matter, as, Drs. Laidlie, "Westerlo, and Romeyn, 
(see Appendix Gr,) and the Rev. Messrs. Hardenbergh, 
Light, Ver Breyck, and Rysdyck ; and their judicious 
and highly useful efforts must not be forgotten ; but 
Dr. Livingston is preeminently entitled to the precious 
and enduring honor of having been the Peace Maker. 
The station to which he was elevated in the Conven- 
tion, by the unanimous vote of his brethren, though 
he had been only about a year in the ministry, is an 
indisputable evidence of the opinion entertained by 
them respecting the service he had rendered, and his 
superior right on account of it to preside over their de- 
liberations. When he was but a youth, thinking that 
a union might be effected, he felt a strong desire to do 
something towards its accomplishment ; when residing 
in a foreign country, he labored with zeal to promote 
the great object ; and when he returned, like the dove 
which had been sent forth out of the ark, he came back 
with an olive leaf in his mouth, and ceased not from 
his laudable exertions, until he had the pleasure of 
seeing his brethren dwelling together in unity. Upon 
his pacific plan, as a foundation, a noble and beautiful 
superstructure has since been raised. Soon after its 
adoption, and in conformity to some of its provisions, 
a course of measures was commenced, as the sequel will 



SETTLEMENT IN NEW-YORK. 



143 



show, for building up the Church, which has at length 
been crowned with the most gratifying success. 

In point of popularity and influence, Dr. Livingston 
was now probably second to no minister in the Dutch 
Church. As a proof of the respect he had excited, it 
maybe proper to state that, at a meeting of the trustees 
of Queen's College, held in the spring of 1772, a motion 
was made to elect him President of that Institution, 
which would undoubtedly have succeeded, had it been 
tried ; but it was judged prudent to postpone the elec- 
tion until after the next meeting of the General Assem- 
bly.* Shortly after, he received the following note 
from President Dagget of Yale College. 

" Sir : As I am informed that you have been honored 
with a Doctorate in Holland, I would be glad to have 
a sight of your diploma, (which I will safely re-convey 
to you,) that I may make an entry of it on our College 
records, and certify in the catalogue, the university by 
which it was given. I do, with pleasure, look upon 
our College honored by the honors deservedly confer- 
red on any who owe a little part of their education 
to it." 

It is presumed that the Doctor yielded to the re- 
quest. 

About this time he was elected a member of the 

* Information of this fact was communicated to him in a letter from 
the Rev. J. Light, of New-Brunswick, dated in May, 17 T 2. This gen- 
tleman, it appears by a note in the Christian's Magazine, "was active 
in promoting the independence of the Dutch Church in America. He 
published several very respectable pamphlets on the subject, which 
were answered by the Rev. Mr. Ritzema, of New- York." 



144 MEMOIR OF JOHN HEXRY LIVINGSTON. 



Society of the Hospital in the city of New- York. He 
felt too much, the power of religion upon his heart, and 
was naturally of too kind a disposition, not to take a 
deep interest in associations formed for charitable 
purposes ; but it was in the Church, and in that sec- 
tion of it especially in which his lot had been cast, that 
he found his appropriate sphere of action. Here there x 
was a great deal to be done foi the promotion of the 
Redeemer's kingdom, and to this work he unremitting- 
ly and zealously devoted himself to the close of life. 

To strengthen and perpetuate the union which he 
had been the honored instrument of effecting, and to 
raise the character of the Church, the project was con- 
ceived of procuring, as speedily as possible, the appoint- 
ment and settlement in some suitable place, of a Pro- 
fessor of Theology; and, in condescension to the re- 
spective predilections of the brethren, who till lately 
had been long arrayed against each other, it was pro- 
posed to make a vigorous effort to provide funds for 
the maintainance of a theological professor in Queen's 
College, and then to send to Holland for a professor. 

The project was adopted, and moneys were collected 
in most or all of the churches that had acceded to the 
union. The Convention of Ministers and Elders, which 
met at Kingston, in October, 1773, submitted some over- 
tures to the Trustees of the College, and sent a letter to 
the Classis of Amsterdam, upon the subject of the pro- 
fessorate.* In this letter, after observing that students 

The Rev. Dr. John Dewitt, in his sermon upon the death of Dr. L., 
referring to the foundation which had been laid by the Convention of 
1*7*71, for the theological professorship, makes the following just; 
observation: i; The Reformed Dutch Church is thus entitled to 



SETTLEMENT EST NEW-YORK. 



145 



could be educated at New-Brunswick with little 
expense, that there were churches in the province of 
New- York unwilling to make any contributions to the 
support of the professorate, that £4000 had been sub- 
scribed for it, that a majority of its friends wished to 
have it connected with Queen's College, and that that 
' institution was provided with an ample charter ; they 
request that the Classis would select and endeavor to 
obtain for them, a person well qualified to discharge 
the duties of a professor of theology. In August, 
1774, the Trustees of the College addressed a letter to 
the Convention, in which they gently notice, in the 
first place, the anxiety of this body to have the funds 
raised in the province of New- York properly secured, 
but ascribing it to " a commendable forecast of future 
vicissitudes,'' declare "their readiness to enter into the 
proposed engagements." They then add: "As the 
College funds, amounting to about £4000, fall far 
short of what is necessary for engaging to a professor 
from Holland a competent salary, * * and the 
recommendation of such a professor is daily expected 
from thence ; the augmenting of said funds demands our 
immediate and most serious attention, in order to 
enable the trustees to make out a call for the person 
recommended. And as it is reasonable to suppose, 
that the professor of divinity is the more immediate 
object of your concern, we declare it as our opinion, 
that whenever the trustees of Queen's College shall re- 

the credit of having first contemplated and adopted a system of 
the 'logical education in this country, which has received the ap- 
probation, and been followed by the practice of almost all her sister 



146 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



member the chief end of their incorporation, and 
regard the increase of students in this seminary, they 
will esteem it their duty and privilege to call the pro- 
fessor of divinity, on the recommendation of the Rev. 
Classis of Amsterdam, and the communication thereof 
to your reverend assembly : nor will they have any 
objection to the making him, at the same time, Presi- 
dent of the College, provided it can be done without 
detriment to the collegiate community or theological 
faculty." 

The Classis, it seems, had determined to solicit advice 
of the theological faculty of Utrecht, and not being 
able conveniently to obtain the desired advice, till after 
the opening of the university in the autumn of 1774, 
postponed, of course, their answer to the Assembly. 

A letter from them, dated January 14, 1775, was 
received, however, in or near the following spring, 
and being opened by a committee that had been ap- 
pointed to inspect its contents immediately upon its 
arrival, with power to call, if it should be judged 
expedient to do so, an extra meeting of the Conven- 
tion, it was found that they had unanimously recom- 
mended the election of Doctor Livingston as the pro- 
fessor. The letter of Professor Bonnet was inclosed in 
that of the Classis, and both extolled him as a person 
well qualified for the office, and to be preferred to any 
one that could be sent from Holland ; but in case he 
should decline the office, the Assembly was requested 
to state particularly the salary that would be attached 
to it, in order that the Classis, in looking out a Holland 
divine to fill it, might feel themselves authorized to 
make a definite offer in that respect. 



SETTLEMENT IN NEW-YOBK. 



U7 



The committee immediately issued circular letters, 
calling the Convention to meet in Xew-York in the 
month of May of the same year. The call was obeyed ; 
but as the first battle of the revolutionary contest had 
been fought only a few days before at Lexington, Mass., 
such was the state of feeling in consequence, that the 
members hastily terminated their session, after recom- 
mending the observance, throughout all their churches, 
of a day of fasting, humiliation, and prayer. The par- 
ticular business for which they had assembled, was 
necessarily deferred. 

Hostilities with Great Britian had now commenced 
in earnest ; and it being supposed that the enemy 
would early seek the occupation of Xew-York, which 
was in a defenseless situation, many of the citizens 
deemed it prudent to remove their families into the 
country, and accordingly did remove them in the au- 
tumn of 1775 ; but a much greater number left the city 
in the spring and summer of the following year. 

Philip Livingston, Esq., a distinguished patriot, and 
a member of Congress,* was among the first to take 

* This gentleman was the fourth son of Philip, who was the eldest 
son of Robert, and a grandson of the celebrated John Livingston that 
died at Rotterdam. The following notice of him is extracted from a 
Biography of distinguished persons in America : 

;; Philip Livingston was a member of the family which ha3 long been 
distinguished in the State of Xew-York, and was born at Albany, January 
15th, 1716. He wa3 graduated at Yale College in 1737. With the 
superior advantages of an excellent education, he embarked in mercan- 
tile pursuits, and was soon engaged in extensive operations ; and his 
inflexible integrity, and enlarged and comprehensive views, laid the 
foundation and erected the structure of extraordinary prosperity. His 
first appearance in public was in September, 1754, when he was elected 
an alderman of the city of Xew-York. From this period, he continued 



148 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



this step, and in the month of October conveyed his 
little household to Kingston, in the county of Ulster, 
New- York. 

With Sarah, the youngest daughter of this gentle- 
man, Dr. Livingston had previously entered into a ma- 

to fill various posts under the Colonial Government, till he took a de- 
cided stand against the usurpations of Great Britain. Mr. Livingston 
was chosen a member of the first Congress, which met at Philadelphia 
on the 5th of September, 1774. In this assembly he took a distinguished 
part, and was appointed on the committee to prepare an address to the 
people of Great Britain. He was reelected a delegate in 1115, with full 
power to concert with delegates of other colonies, upon such measures 
as should be judged most effectual for the preservation of American rights 
and privileges. 

' 5 On the 4th of July, I TIG, he affixed his signature to the Declara- 
tion of Independence. On the 15th July, 1776, he was chosen by 
Congress a member of the Board of Treasury, and on the 29th of April 
following a member of the Marine Committee ; two important trusts, in 
which the safety and well-being of America were essentially involved. 
On the 13th of May, 1777, the State Convention reelected him to Con- 
gress, and at the same time thanked him and his colleagues for their 
long and faithful services rendered to the colony and State of New- 
York. 

" Mr. Livingston's attendance on Congress did not, however, preclude 
his employment at home in affairs of importance. He served in every 
capacity in which he could be useful in the councils of his State. He 
assisted in framing a constitution for the State, and, on its adoption, was 
chosen a senator under it. In October, 1777, he was reelected to 
Congress under the new constitution, and took his seat in Congress in 
May, 1778, one of the most critical and gloomy periods of the Revolu- 
tion, and incessantly devoted his whole faculties to the salvation of his 
country. He expired at York, Pennsylvania, on the 12th of June, 
1778. A short time previous to his demise, he sold a portion of his 
property to sustain the public credit ; and though he sensibly felt the 
approach of death, owing to the nature of his complaint, he did not 
hesitate to relinquish the endearments of a beloved family, and devote 
the last remnant of his illustrious life to the service of his country, then 
enveloped in the thickest gloom." 



SETTLEMENT IX NEW-YORK. 



149 



trimonial engagement ; and, in the same month, shortly 
after the settlement of the family in its new place of 
abode, they were united in the conjugal state. This 
event proved to the Doctor one of the happiest in his 
life. Indeed, he could scarcely have formed a more 
felicitous connection, for she was a lady of good sense, 
of a mild and affectionate disposition, of great prudence, 
of sincere and ardent piety ; and he thus became allied 
to other families among the most respectable in the 
colony.* 

Dr. Livingston was himself a sincere and decided 
friend to the American cause. It was the earnest wish 
of his heart that the war begun might result in the es- 
tablishment of his country's independence, and, like a 
number of patriotic and pious ministers of the city, he 
offered his fervent prayers to Grod for its ultimate suc- 
cess. 

The Eev. Dr. Miller, in his Memoirs of the late vene- 
rable Dr. Eodgers, says : " For a considerable time be- 
fore this crisis arrived, Dr. Eodgers and several other 
clergymen of the city, among whom were Dr. Mason 
and Dr. Laidlie, had been in the habit of holding weekly 
meetings, for cultivating friendship with each other, 
and for mutual instruction. Toward the close of 1775, 
the gentlemen concerned agreed to suspend their usual 

* The eldest daughter of Philip married Stephen Tan Renssalaer 
Esq., of Albany, and was the mother of the gentleman of the same name 
and place, who died in 1836,'and whose patriotic services, amiable deport- 
ment, and princely liberality in the promotion of science and religion, 
are well known. The second married Dr. Thomas Jones, a learned and 
respectable physician of New-York, and was the mother of Mrs. Clin- 
ton, the widow of the late much-lamented Governor of the State of 
New- York. 



150 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



exercises at these meetings, and to employ the time, 
when they came together, in special prayer for a bless- 
ing upon the country, in the struggle on which it was 
entering. This meeting thus conducted, was kept up 
until the ministers composing it, and the great mass of 
the people under their pastoral care, retired from the 
city previous to the arrival of the British forces." 

Dr. Livingston was, no doubt, one of this clerical as- 
sociation; and it is probable that, as often as he was 
in the city, he united with them in supplications to 
Heaven for a happy prosecution and termination of the 
conflict. 

But neither political nor religious principle made it 
his duty to remain in New- York, when that would be 
only an unnecessary exposure of his life, and the greater 
part of the people of his charge had fled into different 
parts of the country, to places of more safety. He 
therefore resided in the excellent family with which he 
had recently become connected, and visited the city for 
the performance of ministerial duty, as often as it was 
practicable. Until the British forces took possession of 
New- York, in September, 1776, he and Dr. Laidlie, 
who had also removed to Ked-Hook, alternately came 
down, unless providentially prevented, and preached 
to the remnant of their flock ; and in the month of June 
preceding, he administered the Lord's Supper in the 
Middle Church, which ordinance was not dispensed 
again in any of the Dutch churches in the city during 
the continuance of the war. 

While the Doctor was staying at Kingston, he preach- 
ed once every Sabbath, if in the place, in the Dutch lan- 
guage; but as the congregation there was furnished 



SETTLEMENT IN NEW-YORK. 



151 



with a pastor, (the Rev. Mr. Doll,) when he found that 
he would be probably for some time excluded from 
New- York, he became anxious for another situation, 
where his ministrations might be more needed, and 
about the time that his intercourse with the city ceased, 
it pleased the Lord to provide him just such an one as 
he had desired. 

In the autumn of 1776, the Consistory of the Dtrtch 
Church in Albany invited him to spend the period of 
his exile, or as much of it as suited his convenience, in 
labors among them. This invitation he promptly ac- 
cepted, and, with Mrs. Livingston and his infant son, 
went there in the month of November. 

Whether, anterior to this time, public worship in 
that church had been regularly, or at all, performed in 
English, is not known ; but it was understood that 
during his residence in the place, he would be expected 
to preach in this language, whilst the esteemed pastor 
would take the Dutch service; and for nearly three 
years he labored zealously, in conjunction with the 
pious and excellent "Westerlo, to build up the Church 
in faith and godliness. 

After he had been here about a year, he made a visit 
with his little family to his father at Poughkeepsie, 
which, for a short season, was attended with imminent 
danger, and led to the loss of his journal, containing a 
number of anecdotes, and relating his religious experi- 
ence from the day of his embarkation for Holland. 

It was in the month of October, 1777, when General 
Vaughan, with a small fleet, sailed up the Hudson, and 
burnt Kingston. The enemy, as they passed the 
residence of his father upon the margin of the river, 



152 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



fired into it, and in the perturbation and alarm of the 
moment, produced by this wanton attack, while making 
some hasty preparations to leave the house, he burnt 
that manuscript, under the apprehension that otherwise 
it might fall into improper hands. The loss was a seri- 
ous one to him, and not less so to us, for the journal 
would have yielded much interesting and important 
matter to enrich these pages. 'The whole family, upon 
the above threatening occurrence, fled to Sharon, Conn., 
and remained there some weeks. 

The climate of Albany, in winter, proving too severe 
for the feeble constitution of Mrs. Livingston, he re- 
moved in the summer of 1779 to Livingston's Manor, 
in the hope that this change of situation would be be- 
neficial to her health. How far his ministerial labors 
were pleasing and useful to the people of Kingston, 
the writer has not been informed ; but of their very 
great acceptance in Albany, unquestionable proof can 
be given ; for in the ensuing spring he received a call, 
in due form, to return to them. This call, which is 
dated the 4th of April, 1780, was brought down and 
presented to him the next day by the Eev. Dr. Westerlo, 
and Mr. John Beekman. He took it into serious con- 
sideration, but finally declined it, and continued at the 
Manor, preaching to destitute churches in the vicinity 
the unsearchable riches of Christ. 

The Doctor, it is evident from the facts already stated, 
did not lead a life of inaction or indolence, while com- 
pelled to intermit the exercise of his sacred functions in 
New- York ; nor did he rove about as a political mis- 
sionary, consuming his time in the discussion of ques- 
tions relative to the public affairs, interesting as the 



SETTLEMENT IX NEW-YOBK. 



153 



subject then was to persons of every description 
Though, a decided Whig ; though he rejoiced at every 
occurrence auspicious to the cause of freedom, and both 
in public and in private remembered his beloved conn 
try at the Throne of Grace, praying that the right hand 
of the Almighty, and the light of his countenance, would 
save her, yet he loved the cause of Christ more ; and 
he, therefore, assiduously employed himself in the glo- 
rious service to which he had been called. His pru- 
dence, his just sense of the dignity of his office, and of 
the solemn nature of its duties, were such as could 
hardly fail to preserve him from any unseemly remarks 
in ordinary discourse upon political matters ; but con- 
versation of the kind was not sufficiently suited to his 
taste, to put him in much danger in that respect. Ee- 
deeming grace was habitually the theme of his medita- 
tions ; and he never was so happy as when hearing or 
telling of the victorious operations of Him whose king- 
dom is not of this world, and commending salvation to 
all around him, as well in the social circle as in the 
house of God. 

The church in which the Doctor now regularly 
preached was in the village of Lithgow, where he lived, 
and near the Manor-house, but his- attentions were not 
confined to the congregation that assembled in that 
place. Other congregations within a convenient dis- 
tance — and there were several, composed chiefly of 
G-erman families in want of the ministrations of the 
Grospel — enjoyed a portion of his labors as often as cir- 
cumstances would permit. During his stay with this 
people, which lasted about eighteen months, he preached 
two sermons every Sabbath, one in English and the 



154 MEMOIR OF JOHN" HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



other in Dutch ; and he had reason to hope that his 
strength had not been spent for naught 

The following two years were passed at Poughkeepsie. 
The church in this town, which now was without a set- 
tled minister, desired his services ; and he being rather 
inconveniently situated, in some respects, at the Manor, 
consented to take the pastoral oversight of it; and, 
accordingly, removed for the purpose in 1781, to his 
father's mansion, where he remained until the close of 
the war. Of the profitableness of the Doctor's ministry, 
during this period, no materials are in hand to author- 
ize a full or positive representation. Yet tradition fur- 
nishes one instance which, with its far-reaching results, 
has been well set forth in an article in The Sower, for 
January, 1856, a monthly paper issued by the Board 
of Publication of the Protestant Eeformecl Dutch 
Church. It is entitled "The Line of Influence," and is 
as follows : 

"During the Revolutionary War, the Rev. Dr. Livingston was 
compelled to absent himself from his pastoral charge in the city 
of New-York. Part of this time was spent by him in occasional 
services in or near Poughkeepsie, where, it is said, he often 
preached in a barn. On one of these occasions, there was among 
his hearers a little Hessian drummer, who had been taken prisoner 
after the defeat of Burgoyne at Saratoga, and was sent into the 
interior for safe-keeping. It pleased God to bless the word 
preached to the conversion of this poor captive mercenary, and 
afterwards to ' count him faithful, putting him into the ministry.' 
The Rev. Christian Bork, after laboring in some smaller charges, 
was called to the North-West Church in this city, then worship- 
ping in Franklin street, where he ministered for many years with 
great zeal and success. Among the fruits of his ministry was a 
young man named John Scudder, who, after finishing his theo- 
logical studies, devoted himself to the missionary work in the 



SETTLEMENT IN NEW-TORK. 



155 



foreign field, where he spent a long and most useful life, leaving 
a name embalmed in the grateful recollections of every Christian 
heart. It was his privilege, when about a twelvemonth since he 
closed his eyes in death, to know that three of his sons, like- 
minded with himself, were laboring among the heathen. 

"What a series of results to proceed from one discourse in a rude 
barn amid the tumult of war, and the general relaxation of order 
and morals ! The American pastor, the pioneer East-Indian Mis- 
sionary, the three brothers constituting the Classis of Arcot, in 
Madras ; all links in a chain of spiritual influences running from 
1776 to 185G. And who shall ' tell the generation' of those new- 
born souls yet to trace their saving knowledge of the truth to the 
instrumentality of the sons who now carry on the work begun by 
their honored father? Let no man despise one sermon. Let no 
minister think lightly of one poor, ignorant hearer. Perhaps of 
all the conversions of which the sainted Livingston was made the 
means (and the number was far from being small) not one has 
been attended with such abundant and lasting blessings to the 
Church and the world, as that of the little Hessian drummer who 
strayed into the Dutchess county barn some eighty years ago." 

The present cheering prospects of America led him 
to reflect with, much attention upon the changes which 
a new form of political government would render ne- 
cessary in ecclesiastical policy, in order to place the 
' Church in an advantageous position, and give her a 
proper standing and influence among other denomina- 
tions. The following extract of a letter to the Eev. Dr. 
Westerlo, dated 22d October, 1783, will show the in- 
terest and mature deliberation with which he revolved 
the important subject, and also the origin of apian which 
was ultimately adopted, but not till towards the close 
of his life. 

" The revolution in our political interests has made a 
change in the general face of our American world, and 



156 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



as it has removed some difficulties which, were taken 
into consideration in our former plan, so it has intro- 
duced others which deserve a very weighty and impar- 
tial discussion. The common enemy to our. religious 
liberties is now removed ; and we have nothing to fear 
from the pride and domination of the Episcopal hier- 
archy." 

11 A sufficient seminary for all the purposes of com- 
mon literature, is now already established in the Jer- 
seys, and will probably be enlarged into an university, 
and be most favored by the Legislature in that State. 
The erecting, therefore, a College, with all the appen- 
dages necessary to justify the appellation, at Bruns- 
wick, appears to be an object at once beyond our 
funds, and in itself unnecessary. The question will 
then recur, what must, what ought, what can we do ? 
To me, there appears but three possible methods, which, 
if not free from difficulties, seem to be upon the whole 
at least practicable, and in some measure calculated to 
answer the purposes wo wish to obtain — either to 
wait until the government of this State shall organize 
the College in the City of New- York, and then appoint 
a professor for our churches in that College, to be sup- 
ported by the funds of the College ; or, to request 
(which, if done, will doubtless be obtained) a local 
union with Princeton, where a professor of our nomina- 
tion, and supported by us, may teach in their house, 
and the students have the privilege of their library ; or, 
lastly, that our churches support their independence, 
and distinct name and existence, by erecting at Bruns- 
wick — not a College, but a Divinity-Hall, for the sole 
purpose of teaching Theology." 



SETTLEMENT IX NEW- YORK. 157 

"I will freely communicate to you my sentiments 
upon each of these, not only because you have a right, 
as a friend, to know my opinion, but because I wish to 
prompt you to an explicit declaration of your own 
mind upon the subject, as I am by no means fixed in 
my views, but would fain gain all the advice possible 
in a matter which is justly considered by all as import- 
ant, and which can not succeed without the joint con- 
currence and approbation of the whole." 

"With respect, then, to the first thing proposed, 
it appears to me the following difficulties are altogether 
insurmountable : 1. The time may prove too long for 
the wants of our Church before the College in New- 
York is properly organized. 2. The old Charter of 
that College, and the funds which were given upon 
express condition of the operation of that Charter, will 
create some difficulties ; these have still their friends, 
who will be ready to oppose, if not openly, at least by 
their influence, every measure which seems to prefer 
any persuasion or denomination above the Episcopal. 
3. The government of this State **** will probably 
wish to give no countenance at all to any denomina- 
tion of Christians, lest an infringement of religious 
liberty should be made ; and, therefore, if the College 
should be erected into an university, it is my opinion 
the science of theology will be entirely omitted. For 
us, therefore, to be waiting for that event, will be loss 
of time, engaging in the quarrels of an old stand- 
ing and high partyship, or a final disappointment at 
last." 

" The second has a greater prospect of success, and 
for some time has been uppermost in my mind, in con- 



158 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 

sequence of a train of happy consequences, which. I 
imagined I saw connected with that situation ; nor was 
the assured orthodoxy of all the Presbyterian Churches, 
and their indissoluble union in doctrines with ours, by 
that means, the least argument to persuade me into a 
coalition with Princeton. Bu t, upon mature thought, 
it is evident to me that this measure will not succeed. 
For — 1. Our professor, when placed there, must be 
either under the control of the Trusteeship of that Col- 
lege, or (if an exemption from their jurisdiction should 
be stipulated) it is impossible but he will, in time, be 
under the influence of their customs, sentiments, and 
opinions, as he must be one among the many who 
surround him, and who, all being swayed by one in- 
terest, will unavoidably draw him also with the 
stream ; whereby the professor of the Dutch Church 
will and can not but be a Presbyterian professor. You 
know my sentiments in favor of the Presbyterians too 
well to suppose I mean any thing in this the least de- 
rogatory to them, their doctrines, or their church gov- 
ernment I esteem them highly, and wish many 
among us were not possessed with such groundless 
prejudices against them. But when I consider our 
churches as hitherto preserving a distinct denomina- 
tion, my first observation will be seen to have great 
weight, as the name and existence of the Dutch 
churches by such an union would soon expire. 2. The 
same sum must be raised by us for the support of this 
professorate at Princeton, as if it was placed in any 
other situation, while the prospect of its answering our 
purpose would be dubious, and our professor evidently 
placed farther out of our control, in proportion as he 



SETTLEMENT IN NEW-YORK. 



159 



became united to others. 8. Our correspondence with 
our mother churches in Holland, and the possibility 
of being increased by emigrations from thence, should 
at least incline us to remain as pure and unsuspected of 
any mixture as possible — unless some generous and 
proper plan, formed by a genius equal to the task, 
should be drawn for uniting all the Eeformed Churches 
in America into one national Church — which, notwith- 
standing the seeming difficulties in the way, I humbly 
apprehend will be practicable and, consistent with 
the outlines drawn by Professor Witsius for King 
William the Third, I yet hope to see accomplished. 
But until something of that kind is proposed, what has 
been mentioned above stands with its full force." 

" The last of the three proposed plans remains to be 
considered. At first blush, it is evident that if it can 
be put in practice, it will distinguish our churches as 
singularly concerned for maintaining the truths of the 
Gospel, and instead of absorbing them into other de- 
nominations, will fix their character in a point of view, 
which will hand down the efforts of the present gener- 
ation with honor to posterity. While others have 
labored with success and praise for the cultivation of 
learning in general, it seems to be reserved in Provi- 
dence, as the peculiar province of our churches, to em- 
ploy their whole influence in teaching and establishing 
the Eeformed religion." 

" Before I mention the difficulties which have oc- 
curred to my mind, permit me to premise the argu- 
ments in its favor. 1. If we erect a respectable profes- 
sorate and Divinity-Hall at Brunswick, we shall have 
our institution wholly under our own control; every 



160 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



difficulty can be canvassed, and redress obtained with- 
out the interposition of other denominations, or any 
appeal to different boards. 2. The name and estima- 
tion of the Dutch churches among the various churches 
in America, are in such repute for orthodoxy, that our 
institution will bid fairer to be universally useful when 
we stand alone, than any union with any that can be 
named, could possibly promise. 8. The local situation 
of Brunswick seems to be a proper centre for the States 
of New- York, and Jersey, and Pennsylvania, in the 
last of which there are perhaps as many congregations 
of the Eeformed churches as in both the former. 4. 
But what ought to be a principal consideration is, that 
all the donations and assistance we are to expect for 
this undertaking, will be given by those who belong 
to the Dutch churches, (as every other denomination 
has plans of their own, which call forth their whole 
abilities,) and it is evident the benefactors for our pro- 
fessorate would give with greater freedom, and feel 
more happy in promoting a work, which they were 
assured would remain under the sole inspection of the 
Dutch churches, than by any combination of ecclesias- 
tic interests with Princeton, or political with New- 
York, could possibly be effected." 

" These, and what I might still add, if these were 
not sufficient, have induced me to prefer the last to 
both the former plans. The difficulties which occur, 
are, indeed, not small ; they are few in number, but of 
great w;eight. The one is, it will unavoidably take up 
some time, at least two years, before any thing of im- 
portance can be done towards this establishment. The 
other is, we have not funds equal to the task ; and we 



SETTLEMENT LN* NEW-YOBK. 



161 



shall need the advice of our wisest friends, to point out 
a method for obtaining a sum sufficient to maintain a 
professor in theology, and in the oriental languages." 

,; I have already said that I was not fixed in my 
views respecting this affair : at least, not so fixed but 
that I stand open for conviction, and wish to obtain all 
the light which can be thrown upon the object, before 
I determine in what manner my vote or small influence 
shall direct. Upon discoursing with Mr. Eomeyn, I 
found him fully convinced that what I have last con- 
sidered was the proper line of conduct for us ; and his 
arguments have not a little conduced to establish my 
mind upon this plan. It is the interest of the Redeem- 
ers cause we have at heart. Our hands must do what 
we are called to with all our might. An effectual and 
peculiarly exclusive door is now opened for service. 
The enemy of all religion is not at rest. Oar united 
efforts and blessings, as answers to prayer from the 
throne, may fix an establishment that shall make glad 
the city of our God for ages yet to come.* 7 

The conjectures he formed as to the arrangements 
that would be made in behalf of the literary institutions 
mentioned, and the views of church policy he expressed 
in this letter, were singularly judicious ; and they prove 
"him to have been a man of an enlightened and com- 
prehensive mind, and. however devoted to the best in- 
terests of his own Church, of a catholic spirit. 

To a distressing and protracted time of war succeeded 
at length, in the good providence of that God who 
ruleth among the nations, a time of peace, Ry His 
blessing upon the arms of America, every mountain 
became a plain before her Zerubbabel, and the top 



162 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



stone of her liberties was brought forth with the exult- 
ing shouts of thousands. The conflict between Great 
Britain and this country was brought to a close in the 
year 1783. Provisional articles of peace had been signed 
at Paris in the latter part of the preceding year, and as 
soon as intelligence of the fact reached here, all hostili- 
ties ceased. A number of the exiles ventured forth- 
with to reoccupy their former dwellings ; but they did 
not generally return, until after the evacuation of the 
city by the British troops, on the twenty-fifth of Novem- 
ber, 1783. About this time, Doctor Livingston came 
back to resume his pastoral charge, and commenced a 
laborious course of ministerial duty. 



PASTOR AND PROFESSOR IX NEW- YORK. 163 



CHAPTER TO 

FRO^I THE RESUMPTION OF HIS PASTORAL CHARGE 
TILL THE ADOPTION OF THE CONSTITUTION OF THE 
CHURCH. 

1733-1792. 

The first interview between Doctor Livingston and 
his float, upon their return to New- York, after so long 
a separation, was attended with mingled emotions of joy 
and sorrow. 

On the one hand, the successful termination of the 
war, with the glorious results in prospect, the reposses- 
sion of their former habitations, a sight again of those 
venerable temples in which they had so often raised 
the voice of supplication and praise, and a sight of each 
other, as preserved through all the vicissitudes and 
perils of seven eventful years, were circumstances 
wh^ch could not but awaken in every breast the most 
pleasurable feelings. But, on the other hand, the 
many sad events which had taken place in a number 
of families, some of which, perhaps, had not been ex- 
tensively known or heard of before ; the visible traces 
of the outrages committed by the enemy, the ruinous 
state of several places of worship, which had been most 



164 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



wantonly abused, and among which were the Middle 
and North Churches — the one having been first a prison 
and then a riding-school, the other a prison ; these cir- 
cumstances, together with that of the loss both had 
sustained in the death of the loved and excellent Laidlie, - 
made the occasion one, not less of mutual condolence 
than of mutual congratulation. 

The old church in Garden street, being found unin- 
jured, was, in the month of November, immediately 
after the Doctor's return, reopened for public worship ; 
and the people, grateful as may be supposed, that they 
had one building left in which they could assemble, 
once more came together, and united with their pastor 
in a tribute of thanksgivingf to the Host High, for his 
innumerable mercies. 

The congregation at this time, or rather the residue 
of it, needed extraordinary attention ; and the labor of 
visiting, catechising, and preaching, and of various 
other important duties, necessary in consequence of the 
long suspension of pastoral cares and the commence- 
ment of a new form of political government, was more 
than usually devolves upon the minister of the Gospel ; 

* This much-esteemed and devoted servant of Christ, died at Red 
Hook, in the year 1780, of a pulmonary disease. The two Dutch min- 
isters, though still living, did not come back to the city to reside. Mr. 
Ritzema remained at Kinderhook, and Mr. De Ronde settled at Schagh- 
ticoke, a place north-east of Albany. They were both too far advanced 
in life to resume the responsibilities of the pastoral connection in such a 
city, and the Consistory of the Church, with their accustomed liberality, 
granted to each an annuity of £200 during life. Mr. Ritzema died in 
the year 1796 ; Mr. De Ronde in 1795. 

f The eleventh day of the following month was, by the recommend- 
ation of Congress, observed throughout the United States as a day of 
national thanksgiving. 



PASTOE AND PEOFESSOE IN NEW-YOEK. 165 



more, indeed, than a single one in such a station could 
well perform, without incessant assiduity. And tlie 
Doctor stood alone as the pastor. Of the four minis- 
ters in connection with the Church when the war be- 
gun, he was the only one whom Providence permitted 
to take the oversight of it when the war ceased ; but 
he nevertheless cheerfully undertook the difficult ser- 
vice and discharged it with unwearied diligence and 
zeal. 

While he was thus devoted to his congregation, he 
also cooperated with the friends of science and religion, 
to forward the accomplishment of an object which was 
then in contemplation — the erection of a State Univer- 
sity. 

In a letter to the Eev. Dr. Eomeyn, dated March 18, 
1784, there is the following paragraph : " That evening 
when I parted with you, the Governors of the College 
met, and a bill for erecting a university in the State of 
New- York was read to us. Many observations upon 
the bill, in the form it then bore, were made, and some 
alterations were strongly urged. The alterations in- 
sisted upon were not essential, with respect to the basis 
of the university, but only the form in which the mat- 
ter was managed. There is no opposition from any 
quarter which occasions the least doubt but the business 
will be conducted with that spirit of Catholicism and 
harmony, which will insure a literary foundation of im- 
portance to the Church and State. As soon as the bill 
has obtained its proper alterations ; and gone through its 
different stages, I will endeavor to obtain a copy for 
you, and send it over to you." 

He felt, too, no little solicitude for the general wel- 



166 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



fare of the Church to which he belonged, as is apparent 
from another part of the same letter. Haying mildly 
animadverted upon the strong manner in which a re- 
spected clerical brother had expressed himself in favor 
of Queen's College, he adds: "For my part, I wish 
only for information, and if I know my own heart, I 
am perfectly impartial and without the least prejudice 
in favor of one place or seat of learning above another. 
My only inquiry is, which place can be rendered most 
secure for maintaining our blessed truths unadulterated, 
and which — provided there are several methods which 
in that respect are equally secure — is most easy, practi- 
cable, and advantageous ? I am too much a friend to 
the College of Brunswick to take up any argument 
against it, but if another door should be opened, which 
will answer every purpose sooner and better, I would 
desire to be such a friend to truth and providence as 
not to refuse an acceptance."* 

* To explain this extract, it may be proper to observe, that the hope 
of ever seeing Queen's College in a flourishing state, seems to have 
been now a forlorn one. The funds of the institution had become much 
reduced, and the number of students was only fifteen. The Trustees 
had shortly before given a call to the presidency, to the Rev. Dr. T. 
Romeyn, but the acceptance of it was very doubtful ; and under these 
discouraging prospects of the Seminary, the expectation appears to 
have been cherished, that King's (now Columbia) College, in the city of 
New-York, would be so divested of its Episcopal character, and so new 
modelled, as to afford speedily all the advantages desired for the educa- 
tion of the youth of the Dutch Church. 

The Rev. Dr. Hardenbergh, one of the warmest friends of Queen's 
College, acknowledges in a letter written about this time to Dr. L., that 
" being totally unacquainted with the intentions of civil government, 
as to the important matters of education," he was utterly at a loss 
what to say upon the subject of educating youth for the supply of the 
Church. 



x'ASTOR AND PROFESSOR IN NEW-YORK. 167 



Further on, lie says: "The repeated mention you 
have made about the necessity of forming a classical 
meeting of the Southern district, notwithstanding the 
smallness of the body, has induced me to try if I can 
bring such a measure about. I have not yet seen Mr. 
Schoonmaker of Gravesend, and whether Father Van 
Sinderen can attend, I do not know ; but I shall endeavor 
to form the poor suffering congregations again into a 
body, and get our ecclesiastical judicatories once more 
established." This letter shows that, in the midst of 
numerous and weighty parochial duties, he was employed 
about matters of great importance, either to the commu- 
nity, or to the Church at large. 

It was stated in the last chapter, that the Convention 
which had assembled in May, 1775, to act upon the 
letter from the Classis of Amsterdam, relative to a pro- 
fessor, owing to the alarm then prevalent, dissolved 
itself without attending to the business. In October, 
1784, another Convention assembled, and this was the 
first, it is believed, that met after the conclusion of peace. 
This body proceeded at once to the election of a Pro- 
fessor of Theology, and unanimously bestowed the hon- 
orable office upon the person, whom the Theological 
Faculty of Utrecht and the Classis had concurred in 
recommending. 

An appointment made under circumstances so clearly 
expressive of the Divine will in the case, Doctor Liv- 
ingston could not decline : he accordingly declared his 
acceptance of the same, and a time was fixed for his 
inauguration.* 

* To show the progress of ecclesiastical organization in the Dutch 
Church, it ought to be noticed here, that this Convention resolved to 



168 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENBY LIVINGSTON. 



On the 19th of May, 1785, in compliance with the 
request of the General Synod, the name which the Con- 
vention had now assumed, he delivered his inaugural 
oration in Latin, before them, in the Old Dutch Church 
in Garden street. This discourse, the subject of which 
was, 11 The Truth of the Christian fietigion" was afterwards 
published. Some apposite remarks, in his prologue, 
upon the happy termination of the revolutionary contest, 
and the importance of religion to the nation being made, 
he passed on to a general view of all religion, true and 
false, and showed the foundation of that which is true. 
He treated next of natural and revealed religion ; and, 
having briefly noticed the insufficiency of natural reli- 
gion for the salvation of sinners, as also the necessity of 
a revelation, he exhibited a few of the principal argu- 
ments which prove that the Books of the Old and New 
Testament contain a divine revelation, and then urged, 

distinguish their several assemblies ly the names usually given to such 
judicatories. For particular reasons, at the adoption of the Articles of 
Union, they were simply denominated "the Particular and General 
Assembly:" henceforth, every Particular Assembly was to be called a 
Classis, and the General Assembly, a Particular Synod. There were, 
at the commencement of the war, and probably also at its close, between 
70 and 80 congregations in the State of New- York, and about 40 in 
New- Jersey: of the former, three classes were constituted; of the latter, 
two, which were to meet ordinarily twice every year. The Particular 
Synod was ttf be a delegated body, consisting of two ministers, and two 
elders, from each classis ; and to meet once a year: and it would seem 
that it was now further resolved to have a third judicatory, composed 
of all the ministers of the Church, with each an elder, and one elder from 
every vacant congregation ; which should be called the General Synod, 
and meet once every third year. The statement is made upon the au- 
thority of a paper of Dr. L.'s, which has been referred to before, con- 
taining a few detached observations relative to the Dutch Church. The 
observations appear to have been penned about the year 1^92. 



PASTOR AND PROFESSOR IN NEW-YORK. 169 



at the close of the discourse, a number of other argu- 
ments to confirm his proposition, which it is scarce 
necessary to add, he satisfactorily established. 

The Doctor's extensive acquaintance with ministers 
and other persons, distinguished for learning and 
piety, furnished him almost daily with occasions for 
letter-writing. His epistolary correspondence was, at 
no time subsequently to his settlement in New- York, 
a small affair; but now he had many European 
friends, with whom, as often as an opportunity was pre- 
sented, he reciprocated affectionate attentions. The 
chief of these friends were in Holland, as he had 
himself long resided in that country, and formed while 
there, an intimacy with several eminent persons. He 
had, however, one foreign correspondent, in another 
part of Europe, whose name is worthy of honorable dis- 
tinction in these Memoirs, the celebrated Dr. John 
Erskine, of Edinburgh. This gentleman, in two in- 
stances at least, accompanied his letters with a present 
of several valuable books, as a token of personal esteem, 
and of pious solicitude in behalf of the Dutch Church. 
The letters of this venerable and truly excellent divine, 
to Dr. L., though short, evince a liberality of Christian 
feeling, and a desire to promote the spread and preser- 
vation of the truth, in the Dutch Church, which justly 
entitle them to a particular notice. They were written 
at an advanced age, and, seemingly, with a trembling 
hand. One, dated March 26th, 1784, commences thus: 

"Dear Sir: Permit me to send you, as a mark of 
respect for yourself, and the worthy family from which 
you are descended, and of my best wishes for the Belgic 

Churches on both sides the Atlantic, a few Dutch 

3 



170 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



books." Some of these books, the Doctor is requested 
to keep, and the rest, to present to any ministers or 
private Christians that might need them. 

In another, dated December 14th, 1784, he says : 

" Eegard to one, descended from Mr. Livingston, a 
successful and eminent minister in Scotland ; one, too, 
of whom I had so pleasant accounts from my dear friend 
Mr. Eondal, one of the worthiest ministers of this city, 
disposed me to send you * * * *: not so much, that I 
thought they could be of great use to yourself, as pro- 
bably you might be provided with the best of them, as 
that I supposed there might be Dutch ministers or 
private Christians, in country parishes, not so well pro- 
vided with books, to whom you could present them. I 
now send you 8 more folios, 3 octavos, and one duode- 
cimo, with the same view. * * * Scriptural criticism is, 
I am afraid, too little studied in the American States. 
* * * I mean not, by this, to approve the method in 
Holland, of introducing so much criticism into sermons. 
But, surely, it argues more reverence for Scripture, 
than transforming sermons into philosophical essays, or 
eloquent declamations, no way connected with a text. 
I should be glad to learn from you, the state of religion 
and theologic literature in the Middle States, especially 
in the Dutch and German Churches. I am much con- 
cerned for the storm which seems to be threatening 
Holland. 

" I am, dear Sir, your affectionate Brother and Serv- 
ant, John Erskine." 

About this time, the North Church being repaired, 



PASTOE AND PEOFESSOE IN NEW-YOEK. 171 



and it being desirable that there should be regularly 
full service in both churches, the Consistory determined 
to give the Doctor a colleague, as soon as they could 
obtain a minister of suitable gifts and popularity. In 
pursuance of this determination, a call was presented 
in July, 1785, to the Kev. Simeon Van Aarsdaalen, of 
Eeadington, New- Jersey. 

The prefatory part of this instrument is somewhat 
of an historical nature, and expresses officially, the sen- 
timents then entertained of the Doctor's ministrations. 
It is in these words • 

" Since it hath pleased God to restore his dispersed 
people in peace, from their grievous exile, and estab- 
lish them again in their former habitations, the Minis- 
ter, Elders, and Deacons of the Eeformed Protestant 
Dutch Church, of the City of New- York, desire with 
thankful hearts to acknowledge His unmerited goodness, 
and express their fervent gratitude, by their zeal in 
promoting his worship, and restoring the ordinances of 
his house to their former importance and usefulness." 

"With great expense and labor, one of the ruined 
churches (commonly called the North Church) has been 
repaired, and the public service of the sanctuary for 
some time performed alternately in the North and in 
the Old Church." 

" The death of the celebrated Doctor Laidlie, whose 
labors were eminently blessed, and whose name will long 
be remembered with every sentiment of veneration and 
esteem, has deprived the Dutch Churches in America 
of an able defender of the truth, and this congregation 
of an indefatigable and exemplary teacher. By his 
death, the whole pastoral care, and all the duties of the 



172 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



ministry, are devolved upon Doctor Livingston, who, 
notwithstanding his great exertions and most acceptable 
labors, can not possibly alone supply the wants of a con- 
gregation, whose members are too numerous to con- 
vene in one place of worship, and whose youth require 
catechetical instruction, beyond the strength and atten- 
tion of one minister. It has, therefore, been the fervent 
wish and endeavor of the Consistory, as well as the 
constant request of the congregation, since their return 
to this city, to find a capable and acceptable teacher, to 
assist Doctor Livingston in the work of the ministry, 
and with him to perform divine service in the English 
language. And since they have become acquainted 
with your person and character, your talents and min- 
isterial gifts, their choice has uniformly been placed 
upon you." Then follows the call which, it would appear 
from the fact of its being found among the Doctor's pa- 
pers, was declined and returned. 

In the month of October of this year, the first attempt 
was made to establish a correspondence between the 
Dutch Eeformed, the Presbyterian, and the Associate 
Eeformed Churches. The Synod of the Dutch Church 
had the honor of proposing the matter, and appointed 
a committee to confer upon it with the committees that 
might be appointed by the respective judicatories of the 
other Churches. Doctor Livingston was one of the 
Dutch Committee, and read at the conference, when it 
took place, a written declaration of his own and his 
brethren's views, or rather of the instructions they had 
received in relation to the important business. This 
declaration, in the preparing of which he had, without 
doubt, the most influence, though it expressed a strong 



PASTOR AND PROFESSOR IjS t NEW- YORK. 173 



and inviolable attachment to his own Church, bore no 
semblance of bigotry, and breathed throughout a spirit 
of Christian love and of fervent zeal for "the preserva- 
tion of sound doctrine," the " promotion of piety, and'' 
the " prevention of future discord." The object of the 
conference was represented to be, not "to effect any 
nominal or real union between the respective 
Churches;" but, simply, "to open a correspondence 
that might tend to the general advantage of the Church 
of Christ, the preservation of sound doctrine, promotion 
of piety, and prevention of future discord." 

Having observed that u the standards of" their 
" confession, as well as" their " attachment to them, 
must, by" them, " be for ever preserved inviolate and 
unalterable," and given an account of the Formularies, 
to which every candidate must subscribe before he can 
be admitted as a minister in the Church, the Commit- 
tee, in their Declaration, which was read by the Doc- 
tor, as above stated, proposed a few questions to the 
other Committees. The first related to their standards, 
and to the manner in which they bound themselves to 
abide by their confessions, so as "to exclude all reser- 
vations and exceptions whatever." The second was in 
these words : " Whether the corresponding Synods 
will, in order to lay the foiindation of a full and unre- 
served confidence between our respective Churches, 
give some solemn and authoritative pledge or promise, 
the one to the other, that both, for the present, and as 
far as watchfulness, care, and fidelity, on the part of 
man can prevail, for ever hereafter, a firm, explicit, and 
unconditional attachment to the known formula of our 
respective Churches, respecting doctrine and worship, 



174 MEMOIR OF JOHN" HENRY LIVINGSTON. 

shall be insisted on, and, at all hazards, without the 
fear of man, be practised in each and every one of our 
Churches." The third and fourth respected the re- 
cognizance of deviations from purity of doctrines, and 
the maintenance of discipline. Two articles were then 
added, in reference to the accommodation of disputes, 
and the mode of keeping up some visible correspond- 
ence. 

The writer is unable to say what were the answers 
returned to these questions : but the abstract of the 
Declaration of the Dutch Committee, shows how tena- 
cious our fathers were of the genuine doctrines of the 
Gospel, and how anxiously they sought to bar the intro- 
duction of error into the Church. The final result of 
the conference was the adoption, by the aforenamed 
judicatories, of a plan of mutual and friendly inter- 
course. 

A plan was projected the ensuing winter, by some 
friends 'of literature in the northern part of the State, 
for founding a College in Schenectady, for the pros- 
perity of which the Doctor evinced a benevolent con- 
cern, and probably made some exertions, at the meet- 
ings of the Eegents of the University, being a member 
of that Board. 

In a letter to his worthy friend and brother, the Eev. 
Dr. T. Eomeyn, pastor of the Eeformed Dutch Church 
in that town — one, it is believed, of the original framers 
of the plan, and its indefatigable patron — he says: " If 
I can be serviceable to you in any thing relating thereto, 
I shall be glad to receive your directions;" and, in 
another dated the 25th of February : " I shall be happy 
to hear from you, and wish to know what prospects 



PASTOR AND PROFESSOR IN NEW-YOBK. 175 

remain of our sanguine expectations respecting your 
intended college. I have understood some little mis- 
understanding has taken place in consequence of dif- 
ferent claims to the same lands, which were intended 
to be appropriated for a fund. I hope it may be ami- 
cably settled, and that your influence may prevail to 
engage both sides to unite in the same object. It would, 
doubtless, prove a great advantage to the town to have 
a College placed there, and its importance to literature 
and religion, in that quarter of our State, need not to 
be mentioned."* 

The Legislature of the State, in April, 1784, passed 
an act, entitled, " An Act to enable all the religious de- 
nominations in this State to appoint trustees, who 
shall be a body corporate, for the purpose of taking 
care of the temporalities of their respective congrega- 
tions, and for other purposes therein mentioned." As 
this Act needlessly interfered with the established 
practice of the Dutch Church, the Doctor endeavored 
to procure the addition of a clause or another act, 
suited to the case ; and thus rendered an important 
service to the Church. 

It is well known that the consistory of every church 
is intrusted with the care, not only of the spiritual 
affairs of the society, but also of its temporalities ; and 
that the members of a consistory are not viewed as 
placed permanently in active service ; but that every 
year according to the constitution of the Church, one 
half of the number serving in any congregation must 

* The College was incorporated in 1^94, by the name of Union College, 
a name given it in consequence of the union of different denominations 
of Christians in its establishment. 



176 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



retire to make room for others, or be themselves re- 
elected; and such lias ever been the practice of the 
Church. But the act referred to directed the appoint- 
ment of trustees, in every congregation, a third part 
of the number to be chosen annually, to have - the 
exclusive superintendence of iis temporal concerns. 
The Doctor's object appears to have been to get a bill 
passed, that would make every consistory, for the time 
being, a legal board of trustees ; and, if frequency of 
change in the members of such a board was a point 
of any moment, that was certainly as well provided for 
in the rules and practice of the Church as in the law of 
the Legislature. 

Under date of March, 1786, he thus writes to Dr. 
Eomeyn upon the subject: "The business of our in- 
corporations I found was not properly understood by 
some, and very warmly opposed by others. The ideas 
adopted by the authors of the incorporation act, were 
to keep the temporalities of all churches perfectly dis- 
tinct from spirituals. For this reason, without advert- 
ing to the customs or discipline of any religious deno- 
mination, the body corporate in one and all of them 
was to be formed in a new mode, and this mode be 
adopted by every congregation. In this plan there 
are many of our great folks so established that I des- 
paired of any opening for redress in our case. I ap- 
plied, however, constantly to some leading members 
in both houses, and at last obtained their consent to a 
bill, which I now inclose to Dr. Westerlo, who is re- 
quested to send it forward to you. But, even as to 
this bill, it is suggested to me that it will be insisted 
upon, and probably a clause for that purpose added to 



PASTOR AND PROFESSOR IN NEW-YOBK. 177 



the bill, that our elders and deacons shall be chosen 
at large by the people, and not by the consistories, as 
at present, being, as they say, more republican. 
Should this last be urged, I would rather drop the 
whole application, as that remedy would be worse 
than the present disease, and would infallibly bring 
confusion into our churches. The truth is, I do not 
feel anxious to bring the business forward this session, 
However, I have drawn a memorial, and sent it with 
this conveyance to brother "VTesterlo, for him and you 
to sign ; and if you both judge it is best still to push 
the matter, I will do as you shall direct." 

These efforts of the Doctor proved at length success- 
ful, and a law was passed, enacting '' That the minister 
or ministers, and elders and deacons, and if, during 
any time, there be no minister, then the elders and 
deacons, during such time, of every Eeformed Protest- 
ant Dutch Church or congregation, now or hereafter to 
be established in this State, and elected according to the 
rides and usages of such churches within this State, shall 
be the trustees for every such church or congregation. 1 '' 

In consequence of unintermitted attention to his va- 
rious and arduous duties, the health of the Doctor, in 
the course of the past winter, became considerably im- 
paired, and hoping that he might derive benefit from a 
change of air and more exercise, he removed, the pre- 
sent spring or early in the next summer, to the pleasant 
village of Flatbush, on Long Island. 

For near three years, he had now been sole pastor 
of a large and respectable congregation which, before 
the war, was served by four ministers ; and during the 
greater part of this time, or ever since his appointment 
8* 



178 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 

as professor, he had lectured five days every week to a 
class of theological students. 

Few constitutions are so robust that they would not 
feel the effect of continued and faithful employment for 
such a space, in any profession ; and the Doctor would 
probably have sooner sought this partial and temporary 
retirement from his charge to recruit his strength, had 
he not viewed it as his duty to spend and be spent, while 
a most signal blessing from above attended his labors. 
In the lapse of the period which has been mentioned, 
he received, upon a confession of their faith, more than 
four hundred persons into the communion of the Church ; 
the period was, in fact, one joyful revival season, and his 
own soul participated in the celestial influence which des- 
cended so copiously upon his ministrations. The large 
accessions made to the Church comforted and encou- 
raged him, and his work ; with these convincing tokens 
of the presence of the Divine Spirit in the midst of the 
people, if debilitating to his body, was nevertheless a 
delightful one. 

But a little relaxation was now rendered necessary ; 
and to enjoy it, he removed a short distance out of the 
city. Assistance also was indispensable ; and accord- 
ingly a call was sent about the 1st of August to his 
excellent friend, the Kev. Dr. Eomeyn, of Schenectady, 
to preach in the Dutch language, concerning which 
he thus writes to that gentleman : 

"Kev. and dear Brother : It is with very great 
pleasure, and not without my most fervent prayers 
for success, that I transmit to you the inclosed call 
from our church at New- York. * * * * You 



PASTOR AND PROFESSOR W NEW- YORK. 179 



have long known the high esteem, the affection 
and attachment, which our congregation has borne 
towards you. I intimated this frequently to you 
in our confidential conversation, and your disinclina- 
tion to live in the city, and refusals to lend an approv- 
ing ear to my wishes, have prevented us from calling 
you before. * * "We conceived your principal ob- 
jection was to performing service in two languages. The 
Consistory, therefore, have called you only to preach in 
Dutch. Your service will therefore be easy. The 
nnmber of Dutch families is not great ; but, lest you 
might fear that your usefulness should thereby be 
limited, the whole large congregation is before you for 
parochial duties in English ; and your established cha- 
racter and old friendships open a door for extensive 
service and usefulness among us, above any other what- 
ever. * * * * You know the unfeigned affection 
I have long had for you, and, therefore, you may with 
propriety consider me as an interested advocate in the 
present business ; and, indeed, I acknowledge it — I feel 
myself greatly interested. I have long desired to have 
you for a colleague ; and, notwithstanding the discou- 
ragements you have given me, I now have hope that 
the time is come when I shall call you by that confi- 
dential name. I wish to have you for many reasons ; 
but I cheerfully leave you with the Lord. Bring the 
matter to him, and, after weighing the whole, I hope 
you will see it to be your duty to give us a favorable 
answer." In a postscript to the affectionate letter from 
which these extracts are made, he says: ' ; My health, 
as I wrote you some time since, has been much on the 
decline. I found it necessary to move out of the city, 



180 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



and have come over to Long-Island, at Flatbush. This 
change of air and necessary exercise have been much 
blessed to me. I am better than I was ; but am still 
distressed with pains in my breast. I can not preach 
so often as I have hitherto done in the large churches 
in the city. The gentlemen who study theology have 
followed me to Flatbush. It is here cheaper for them 
than in the city ; they have more leisure and better op- 
portunities for study; and I have more time also to 
instruct them. * * I feel bound in conscience to 
attend to the duties of the professorate, especially when 
I see my health also requires it. * * I wish to see 
you and converse with you. I shall be happy — very 
happy — to have you near me as a colleague given of the 
Lord. If your mind is clear upon the subject of our 
call, I think you need not postpone the acceptance: 
the sooner you come the greater will be the proof of 
your affection." 

In another, dated Flatbush, 29th of August, 1786, 
he observes : " The answer you sent to the Consistory, 
after receiving a call, was yesterday read in full Con- 
sistory. It gave us great satisfaction to find that you 
referred the whole business to the sovereign will of 
Grod, and with a determination to seek counsel at the 
Throne of Grace, had resolved to follow what appeared 
to be duty. We cheerfully join with you in our pray- 
ers, and, as it is his glory and the prosperity of his 
Church which is our great object, we desire to look up 
to him alone, and trust he will incline your heart, with 
full conviction of his will, to accept of our call. It is 
a great grief to us, that our wants should interfere with 
others, and our gain involve the loss of others ; but we 



PASTOR AND PROFESSOR IN NEW-YORK. 181 



are confident that, notwithstanding the strong ties and 
fervent entreaties of those with whom you now are, yet 
if you was thoroughly acquainted with our situation, 
and saw the happy train of consequences which are con- 
nected with your becoming our minister, and which 
have respect to the well-being of our churches at large, 
you would not hesitate one moment to consider our 
invitation as the call of God." 

a It is not only the prosperity of our large congrega- 
tion, that depends greatly upon your becoming our 
minister, but even the more extensive views of supply- 
ing the many vacancies in our churches. I can not do 
justice to the expectation and wants of the churches, 
unless I can be supported and succeeded by one to 
whom the burden of ecclesiastical and parochial cares 
can be transferred. In you I place, as you know, the 
fullest confidence, and with me the whole congregation." 

" To the Lord my waiting eyes are raised, and I trust 
he will, at length, grant what has long been the desire 
of my heart." 

About the same time, the Consistory called also the 
Eev. Dr. "William Linn, of the Presbyterian Church, to 
preach in the English language, who accepted their call, 
and was soon after installed. 

His sentiments respecting this eloquent and accom- 
plished divine, he very frankly expressed to his friend 
Dr. E. : "We yesterday," he informs him in one letter, 
" sent a call to Mr. Linn. Whether we shall succeed is 
uncertain. He is an excellent preacher — appears to be 
a good and great man." In another, dated January 29, 
1787, after urging still further the acceptance of the 
call, he says : "Best assured, my brother, of my fullest 



182 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



confidence, and sincerest love and friendship ; and I am 
peculiarly happy to add, that you will find in our new 
colleague, Mr. Linn, that rectitude and approved abil- 
ities, mixed with the most affectionate inclination to 
make all who are connected with him happy, which 
can not fail of rendering him an acquisition in general, 
and peculiarly acceptable to us/ 7 The call was declined : 
and in a letter dated August 29, 1787, he wrote again 
upon the subject as follows : "I believe I have omitted 
to do what I am sure it was my inclination and intention 
to have done, that is, to have wrote you a letter in answer 
to your last, which conveyed your final resolution 
respecting the overtures made to you by our congrega- 
tion. Acquiescence in the will of Heaven made it my 
duty to be fully resigned to the dispensation of Provi- 
dence ; but I found myself greatly disappointed, as it 
has been for a long while my fixed wish and desire to 
have you with me as a fellow-laborer. I trust the Lord 
has overruled, and will accept of our sincere endeavors, 
according to the measure of our present light, to pro- 
mote the interests of Zion." 

The Consistory soon after called the Eev. (afterwards 
Dr.) Gerardus A. Kuypers, to preach in the Dutch 
language. The call was returned. Another call, how- 
ever, was made upon the same gentleman early in the 
year 1789, which was accepted. (See Appendix H.) 

The Doctor's residence on Long-Island appears to 
have been only during the summer months : in winter 
he occupied his house in the city, and performed his 
full share of pastoral duty. The leisure gained in con- 
sequence of the settlement and assistance of Dr. Linn, 
was devoted to the young men under his care, whom. 



PASTOR AND PROFESSOR IN" NEW- YORK. 183 



the necessities of the Church being so very pressing, 
he was desirous to advance in their studies, that they 
might be examined for licensure at the next meeting 
of the Synod,* which was shortly to take place. 

The Church had now assumed the form and charac- 
ter, in his estimation, of a body fully capable of self- 
government, and no longer subject to a foreign jurisdic- 
tion ; but the Church in Holland, although it had advised 
and approved of the erection of independent judicato- 
ries here, did not readily recognize the present system of 
organization, and was unwilling to yield altogether the 
right of control ; at least, it was suspected that such a 
feeling existed, and he thus expresses himself in the letter 
just referred to, upon the circumstance that led to the 
surmise : "The letter accompanying the acts of Synod, 
I have not opened, but have only taken notice of the 
address, in which I find they implicitly deny our being 
a synod, by giving us the same title we had before our 
present organization ; and this is one thing I wish to 
know your sentiments upon ; whether it would not be 
proper for us, by some article in our minutes, or by 
some clause in our letter, to express our sensibility 

* The examination of candidates for licensure or ordination belonged, 
according to the articles of union, to the G-eneral Assemblies, or to what 
were now called Particular Synods, As the Doctor, however, in one 
of his letters, after speaking of business that could come with propriety 
only before the Convention or the General Synod, at their triennial 
meeting, which was to be held the following October, remarks, " There 
are several young gentlemen who will appear before the Synod to be 
examined" — it is supposed that this first class was examined by that 
body, probably with a view, in part, that the Church at large, thus 
assembled, might see what proficiency they had made, under the Pro- 
fessor's instruction. For a long time, such examinations have been con- 
ducted by the several classes in the presence of Deputati Synodi. 



184 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENBY LIVINGSTON. 



upon their silence respecting our present judicatories ; 
for, if we correspond, it ought to be continued upon 
the footing of mutual re&pect, or it may, in its conse- 
quences, soon be productive of some disagreeable events. 
Perhaps we have been too remiss in not taking notice 
of this before, or it is possible that silence may be the 
most prudent and eligible. I have not yet made up 
my own mind upon the subject, but will cheerfully 
refer myself to your judgment : I wish you would think 
upon it." There can be no doubt that the Synod took 
a proper notice of this apparently designed and repre- 
hensible slight, as the future correspondence of the 
mother Church was perfectly respectful ; but whether 
they did or did not, it is plain that the Doctor himself 
was scrupulously jealous of the independence and dig- 
nity of the Church ; and in every matter which tended 
in the smallest degree to the injury of either, he evinced 
through life a like sensibility. 

When the Synod met, a committee was appointed, 
of which it would appear he was chairman, to make 
and publish a selection of Psalms for the use of the 
Church in its public worship ; and in a letter to the 
same individual, dated March, 1788, he says, in refer- 
ence to this business : "For my part, I have digested 
only from the first Psalm to the fiftieth inclusive. I 
mean, if it please God to spare health, to go through 
the whole, and I wish we might be so prepared in the 
work, that we could compare our several digests, and 
make a report to the Synod at the next sitting in May." 
He then adds: " I suppose it will be proper, when we 
get the new Psalms printed, to have the Catechism, 
Articles of Faith, and Liturgy, printed and bound up 



PASTOR AND PROFESSOR IN T NEW-YORK. 185 



with some of the books, and leave it to the purcha- 
sers to get the Psalm-book either with or without 
those additions, as the difference in the price will be 
considerable. But a fair opportunity will now be 
offered to publish with our articles and liturgy, the 
form of our discipline and government. The churches 
in America are all assuming a new complexion. From 
being the appendages of national churches in Europe, 
they now become national churches themselves in this 
new empire. All the denominations of any import- 
ance in America, have considered themselves in this 
new light, and have made regulations accordingly : and 
it deserves our attention to see what ought to be done 
with respect to ourselves in this particular, and how 
far we may proceed consistent with the relation we yet 
claim to our mother Church in Holland. We are not 
represented, and we can not have a representation in 
the churches in Holland — as such, we have already 
formed ourselves into an independent Synod, and we 
have sufficient proof that some of our brethren in Am- 
sterdam would rather we had not done this, but their 
views are contracted, and can not be our rule. It is 
necessary we should revise some articles in our funda- 
mental agreement respecting our church government of 
1771, and see whether some of those articles do not 
militate against our independent state." 

Under date of March, 1789, to the same, "he says: 
" I have received answers from all the gentlemen of 
the committee, and am authorized and requested by 
them to proceeed with the printing. The expectation 
and wishes of our churches are raised, and I am con- 
tinually asked when our Psalms will be published. * 



186 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



*v * - * I now only wait for a letter from yon * 
* * As to the translations, and what respects our 
Church discipline and government, these I suppose, 
may be brought in such readiness as to enable us to 
make some report in the Synod of May, and take such 
further steps, as to lay the whole before the Synod of 
October. But the Synod has empowered the Commit- 
tee, respecting the Psalms, to proceed to the printing 
as soon as they shall agree upon the selection from the 
respective authors." 

Upon this subject, he again writes to the same: 11 It 
was of consequence to us to obtain a copyright of our 
Psalm-Book. As our Synod is not a body corporate, 
I took it out in the name of our Dutch Church of New- 
York ; and, to ascertain the property for the Synod, I 
have got an instrument sealed with the seal of the 
Consistory, in which a declaration is made that this 
right is held in trust for the Synod, and shall always 
be subject to the direction of the same." 

This step was taken at the suggestion of Dr. Linn, 
and some other friends ; and so rapid was the sale of 
the book, that a second edition was soon called for. 
Such a work was, indeed, much needed ; and with all 
its faults it gave great satisfaction at the time ; and, 
wherever the use of it obtained, had a beneficial influ- 
ence. 

Among the papers of the Doctor are copies of two 
letters, the one to Dr. Hardenbergh, of New-Brunswick, 
having respect to the College in that place ; the other to 
a private friend, Mrs. Judge Livingston, the mother of 
the late Chancellor, relating to points upon which, as it 
would appear, his advice had been asked. Parts of 



PASTOK AND PROFESSOR IN NEW- YORK. 187 



these are presented here, on account of the important 
opinions contained in them, and the evidence they fur- 
nish of the deep interest he took in all the concerns of 
the Church. The first is dated March 4th, 1790 : 

"Reverend and dear Brother: The subject we 
have often conversed upon, has never been brought to any 
decided point ; whether we differ in sentiment or are fully 
agreed, when every preliminary respecting the execution 
of the plan, is taken into consideration, we do not yet 
know. I am sincerely glad that you have brought it 
forward, in your very acceptable letter of the 23d ult., and 
I will give you my thoughts in answer, with candor and 
confidential freedom ; for, if I know any thing of my own 
heart, I have no particular advantage or interest in view, 
but wish to examine the question, as I am sure you do, 
only as it relates to the prosperity of the Church, and is 
calculated to promote the general welfare of our Zion. 
Your being at the head of the College, and my being 
placed in the professorate, may, to others, appear as an 
evidence of our being partial to whatever is calculated 
to promote the one or the other of these branches ; and 
it is possible, a secret influence may, undiscerned even 
by ourselves, warp our judgments. But I think I 
view the subject in the same light I formerly did, 
and am ready to unite in its prosecution with the same 
impartiality, as if I had no official connection whatever 
in the issue. The five reasons you give in support of 
your sentiments are weighty. Each of them is true and 
important, and all of them together carry great convic- 
tion with them. I thank you for the judicious arrange- 
ment of the arguments, and confess they throw such 



188 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



light upon the subject as leaves little room for opposi- 
tion, if any persons should be found willing and desir- 
ous to oppose. For myself, I assure you, my dear 
sir, that I am so far from having any inclination to 
obstruct the prosecution of the plan, that I feel sincerely 
willing to do all in my power for its advancement, and 
as soon as we can digest the proper means, I shall be 
happy to aid in its accomplishment." 

" The ambiguity of words and names often occasions 
a difference in judgment, and very frequently promotes 
jealousies, and even opposition, where, in fact, the prin- 
cipal views are the same." 

" My ideas upon this subject have always been, that 
the situation of our churches required a literary insti- 
tution ; not so much for increasing its respectability by 
the accomplished character of its lay members, (although 
that is a consideration which, in your first and second 
arguments, you have mentioned with great propriety,) 
but principally to prepare our youths for the ministry. 
Theology is the branch which is most connected with 
the Church. It is also a branch in which, without arro- 
gance we may say, our Dutch Churches are acknow- 
ledged, even in America, to equal, if not exceed, other 
denominations ; and if proper steps could be taken to 
lift up an education in theology, in a conspicuous and 
respectable point of view, we might not only hope to 
supply our own immediate wants, but also be the means 
of supporting the great truths of our holy religion, 
and become useful to other denominations. So far, 
then, as a college might be instrumental to promote 
this great end, I always have wished a college might 
be instituted ; but if by a college is understood a lite- 



PASTOR AND PROFESSOR IN NEW-YORK. 189 



rary institution, which, expands in all the branches 
usually taught in universities, I imagine it would swal- 
low up all the resources which we might be able to ob- 
tain, and in that view, after all our efforts, we should 
still fall short of the principal object. * * I believe the 
religious liberty which is now established since the 
revolution in our land, and the liberality of sentiment 
which characterizes our country, do in a great measure 
lessen the weight of the arguments, which before the 
war might have been urged for the necessity of a col- 
lege upon the broadest basis ; but still I know that an 
attachment to particular denominations, and a partiality 
in favor of their own, so universally actuates all men, 
that if we had an institution, which would answer the 
usual purposes of educating young persons destined for 
public life, it would be an acquisition to us, and there- 
fore I would wish to promote such an institution, pro- 
vided we could agree to set proper bounds to the ex- 
penses necessary for obtaining teachers and apparatus ; 
and remember that theology was our favorite object and 
principal aim, and all the rest was only the porch that 
led to the temple of religious truth." 

" There is a luxury in literature, and a fascination in 
the public approbation, which will easily lead the pa- 
trons of a college from their original object, and tempt 
them to spend all their strength upon the more popular 
branches of education, unless they wisely form their 
plan, and previously limit themselves by proper restric- 
tions. I think, with respect to ourselves, it is very 
practicable to ascertain the general system of a college 
in a line which shall procure to us the attention of the 
public, and sufficiently answer all the common pur- 



190 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 

poses of colleges in America, and yet secure the princi 
pal object, by leaving us in a capacity of establishing 
the theological branch upon a respectable and perma- 
nent basis. I am not fully convinced which ought to 
be attempted first, or whether they ought both to go 
together. What you mention in your two last argu- 
ments appears to be weighty, and I have at present no 
objection against attempting the business in that train. 
Let provision be made for the college first. I am per- 
fectly contented to fall in with any plan which appears 
calculated to answer the principal object which, as min- 
isters of the Lord Jesus, we have in view. As to the 
exertions of the Dutch Church in New- York, much 
may be said in apology for a people which have been 
ruined by the war, and are now still straining every 
nerve to rebuild their demolished temples. Their 
wealth is greatly diminished, and it is not in their 
power to patronize public objects with the same liberal- 
ity which, before the war, would have been practicable 
for them. But I am confident, if we digest a plan in a 
wise and proper manner, and convince them of its safe . 
and successful operation, they will not withhold their 
proportional assistance." 

The second of these letters is dated March 23, 1790. 

" Dear Madam: * * * * * * I thank you 
for writing, and most sincerely sympathize with you, 
and your whole neighborhood, in the want of the pub- 
lic ordinances of divine worship. The vacant congre- 
gations are so numerous that, as fast as we send out 
new candidates, they are immediately called, and I 



PASTOR AND PROFESSOR IN NEW- YORK. 191 



know not of any resource sufficient immediately to sup- 
ply the places which are destitute. It is expected there 
will be three or four students who will come forward 
next fell, but these will be very inadequate to the de- 
mands of the churches. I know of no remedy for the 
present, but that the respective classes must pay more 
attention to the vacancies within their district, and by 
a punctual rotation of duty, supply such places with 
frequent service." 

M The Methodists, whom you mention as indefatigable 
in promoting their opinions, appear to be indeed very 
zealous. I am but little acquainted with them; I 
know none of their preachers, and can only judge of 
their doctrines from a few of their books which I have 
seen. I hope, in charity, that men who so industriously 
strive to warn sinners of the evil of their ways, have 
the glory of God in view ; and I most sincerely wish 
they may be the means of alarming many stupid and 
wicked characters, with which our country abounds. 
Great allowances ought undoubtedly to be made for 
persons who are not within the means of proper inform- 
ation, and who are strongly prejudiced against certain 
words and phrases, which, however scriptural and true, 
appear to them to convey an improper idea. Under 
such impressions they may be strongly attached to a 
system which comprehends many errors, without see- 
ing the consequences which flow from their creed ; but 
whatever difference there may be in their phraseology, 
I can not conceive that any who have experienced the 
saving influences of the blessed Spirit, who is the 
Spirit of truth, and received the Lord Jesus, as he is 
offered in his word, can heartily oppose the doctrines 



192 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



of grace as professed by our Eeformed Church, or be 
at real enmity against those truths, which not only sin- 
gly vindicate the sovereignty and glory of God, but 
are so connected and mutually support each other, that 
if one is taken away, the whole chain is broken, and 
the plan of redemption, which is worthy of God, and 
illustriously displays all the divine perfections, becomes 
obscured, if not essentially changed. * * * It is said 
the knowing and learned among them, of which there 
is no doubt a considerable number, avowedly adopt the 
whole system of the Arminian doctrines : if so, their 
opposition to the confession of faith of the Eeformed 
Church is easily accounted for." 

" There was, some time ago, a considerable rumor 
throughout the city, respecting the religious exercises 
of many in the Methodist Church. Whether there 
was any foundation for the favorable report you heard 
concerning it, I do not know. I wish it may be true : 
my soul would rejoice if hundreds of sinners were 
savingly converted by whatever instruments the Lord 
might choose. Instead of gainsaying the work, I 
would most willingly unite my thanksgiving to the 
great Eedeemer. But it certainly is premature to pre- 
tend to ascertain with precision the numbers which are 
converted, upon no other evidence than the impressions 
received, or affections expressed, in one hour. It argues 
an ignorance of the human heart, or the pride of party 
ostentation, to come forward with such accounts so soon 
and so positively." 

Two of his particular clerical friends and most able 
coadjutors in ecclesiastical matters, about this time 



PASTOR AND PROFESSOR IN NEW- YORK. 193 



rested from their labors ; and lie was deeply affected 
with the loss which the Church and himself had sus- 
tained in their death. Divine Providence, in the re- 
moval of men so eminent for their wisdom, piety, and 
zeal, seemed to him to wear a very frowning aspect. 

He thus feelingly expresses himself upon the subject, 
in a letter to Dr. Eomeyn, of Nov. 1791 : " When I 
returned home, I was greatly afflicted to find a letter, 
which announced the death of our dear brother Meyer.* 
Another^ of our pillars is gone. He was a good and 
great man. We deservedly loved him, and placed 

* Dr. Hermanus Meyer was a man of extensive learning, and had 
been educated in one of the German universities. He sailed from Lon- 
don on the 6th of August, 1763, in the same ship with the Rev. Dr. 
Kardenbergh, and afterwards married his sister. He was first settled 
at Kingston, N. Y., but dissension arising out of his connection with the 
Coetus party, he removed to Xew- Jersey in November, 1772, and be- 
came pastor of the churches of Pompton and Totowa. While there he 
was appointed by the General Synod, Professor of Oriental Literature 
and Lector in the Hebrew language, and received from Queen's College 
the honorary degree of Doctor of Divinity. He died in 1791, and his 
remains sleep under the pulpit of the church on Pompton Plains. Few 
men stood higher in the opinion of the Church, or were more generally 
beloved, than Dr. Meyer. He was, as Dr. Livingston said, " a good and 
great man." 

f The other person whose death is alluded to, it is presumed, was 
the Rev. Dr. Eilardus Westerlo, of Albany. He died the preceding 
year. This excellent servant of Christ "was a native of Holland. He 
had just finished his studies in the University of Groningen, when a 
call from the Dutch Church in Albany was put into his hands, which 
he accepted, and came to America, in 1760. He was a man of strong 
mind, of eminent piety, and of great erudition, especially in theology, his 
favorite study, and in Oriental Literature. He was highly popular and 
useful as a preacher, and lived in great honor and esteem with his 
brethren in the ministry, and with the churches in general, until his re- 
moval by death.'' — Christian's Magazine. 

9 



194 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



great confidence in him. What a dark cloud appears 
to hover over our churches ! Truly, my dear friend, 
we have reason to mourn, and inquire why the Lord 
is contending with us. The ways of Providence are in 
the great deep, and who can foresee the issue. But 
few of us are now left to whom our younger brethren 
look for direction and assistance. Surely the remnant 
must become more and more precious to each other, and 
it behooves us to make every necessary arrangement for 
the establishment and prosperity of our ecclesiastical 
matters, with as much haste as is consistent with pru- 
dence/' 

The Doctor was now busily engaged as one of a com- 
mittee appointed to set forth, in a simple and condensed 
form, the Doctrines y Worship, and Government of the 
Church. The task was one of great responsibility; 
and the labor of compiling and arranging the matter 
was divided chiefly, as it would appear, between him- 
self and Dr. Eomeyn. A few extracts from his cor- 
respondence with this gentleman will give some idea 
of his share in the work, and of the pains he took 
that the Church might be famished with a suitable 
manual to regulate her future concerns. 

In a letter dated May 12th, 1790, he says: "I am 
happy to see from your letter, that you are engaged in 
that work, which I have so often requested and wished 
you would finish. The division you make is a very 
natural and proper one ; I have only to observe that, 
under the third head, which is to comprise extracts from 
the post acta, solutions of questions, and subsequent 
acts and regulations of our Synod, you will need more 



PASTOR AND PROFESSOR IN NEW-YORK. 195 



attention to know what to leave out, than what to in- 
sert. The variety of cases which have occurred, and 
which will for ever arise in the Church, upon which 
some solution or determination must be made, are little 
less than infinite, and, from some particular circum- 
stances attending them, are seldom found to be exactly 
alike. Nothing more can, therefore, be done in any 
church government, than to lay down some general 
principles, and leave it to the Synods to apply these 
with prudence and care in the decision of particular 
cases. It will be safe in us not to descend too far to 
particulars in our publication, but only exhibit to the 
world the outlines of our views of church discipline, 
and our leading principles and conduct." 

In another of July, 1790 : " * * * * Your progress 
in our Church papers gives me pleasure ; but, that you 
find a part of your work is to be done over again, is 
very chagrining. I hope you may be able to finish 
agreeably to the plan you have proposed, and I make 
no doubt but it will be acceptable to the Synod. Upon 
looking over the acts of our first Yergadering, which 
contain the outlines of our present Church government, 
I find it will not read well in English, to translate the 
whole, verbo terms, from the Dutch. Do you not suppose 
it would answer every purpose of publication, which is 
to convey the standards of our discipline, if the contents 
of our grand Artikulen were faithfully given in a good, 
easy English style, without restricting ourselves to a 
full translation of every word, which, as it was not de- 
signed for the press, so in many passages, is not suffi- 
ciently accurate for that purpose ?" In another of 
March, 1791 : "I have not been able, until within a few 



196 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



days past, to take up the subject of our own constitution 
and discipline. Upon considering the design of the 
publication, I am fully of your opinion, that there is no 
necessity of adhering strictly to a translation, totidem 
verbis, of the Synod of Dort, nor even of giving every 
article, as many of them are local, and only applicable 
to the Netherlands. It is not a history of the Dutch 
Church as it is in Europe, which we are to compile, but 
a true and regular detail of the constitution of the 
Eeformed Dutch Church in America. As our charters 
and our discipline refer us to the Synod of Dort, we 
must show that we build upon that basis, with such 
deviations as time and circumstances have rendered 
unavoidable. We have two sources from whence we 
draw our present constitution : one, the Synod of Dort, 
and the other, the resolutions and fundamental articles 
agreed upon by our churches, and ratified by the Classis 
of Amsterdam, in the name of the Synod of North-Hol- 
land. From these and some subsequent acts of our 
own Synod, our discipline is formed. If we mention 
these sources in the head or title, and then proceed to 
exhibit one regular system, without any circumlocutions 
or repetitions, it will appear more simple and connected, 
and will be better understood, than a large translation, 
and explanatory notes, could possibly make it. To 
this end, suppose a title like this was made : " The 
Constitution and Form of Government of the Eeformed 
Dutch Church in America, as established in the Synod 
Nat : of Dort, 1618-19 ; and agreed upon in the Assem- 
bly held at New- York, 1771-72, by and with the appro- 
bation of the Classis of Amsterdam, and finally ratified 
in Synod, held at New-York, October, 1791." This, 



PASTOR AKD PROFESSOR IN NEW- YORK. 197 



or something shorter, which may comprehend these 
ideas, will justify us in making such extracts from each 
of these sources as shall, altogether, bring forward one 
complete system. This will show to the world what our 
present constitution is, and sufficiently prove our con- 
nection and adherence to the Synod of Dort. I wish 
to know your ideas upon the subject. Please to drop 
me a line." 

Under date of August 1, 1791, he says: "I have 
not yet been able to pay much attention to the business 
respecting our Church government, but I will endeavor 
to draw out, soon, the whole sketch, agreeably to our 
mutual views, and will send it up for your inspection." 

Again he says, under date of August 20: "I am 
so slow in my progress with the Acts of Dordrecht, 
that I know not whether I shall be able to accomplish 
your expectations." , 

The sketch, however, was prepared and submitted to 
the Synod; but not being in a finished state, was again 
put into the hands of the committee, for revisal. And 
in November, he wrote again: "I will try, as the Lord 
shall give me strength, to attend to our constitution, and 
prepare a fair and accurate copy, for the approbation 
and final decision of Synod. The notes and observations 
you mention, must be attended to also ; but they must 
be short and guardedly worded. I wish you would 
draw out a sketch of such which you especially judge 
to be most important, and send it to me." In a letter 
dated March, 1792, there is the following paragraph : 
"Upon looking over the papers, as they now stand cor- 
rected by the Synod, I find the first, third, and fourth 
parts may be easily brought into form, without altera- 



198 MEMOIE OF JOHN HENKY LIVINGSTON. 



tions or additions of much consequence ; but what to 
do with, the second part, which respects our Ecclesiasti- 
cal Assemblies, I do not yet know : as it now stands, 
it appears deficient. To make it intelligible, and 
answer the purpose of a standard for the information of 
all our members, I believe some additions will be found 
necessary. I have not yet digested particulars, but will 
send you a sketch of them as soon as I can get them 
ready." 

The following March, he wrote again : *• I have dis- 
covered that to make the whole ready for the press, will 
unavoidably demand more time than can be found pre- 
vious to the Synod in May ; I, therefore, now put in a 
plea for an abatement to any promises on my part, or 
injunctions on the part of the Synod for that purpose." 

"An idea has occurred to me respecting this business, 
which I wish to pommunicate and receive your advice 
upon. I find the Synods in Holland, etc., as they suc- 
cessively brought forward their Church orders, always 
retained what the former and more ancient Churches 
had done. This they made their text, and added only 
what might be considered essentially applicable to them- 
selves. This is remarkably the case in the acts of the 
Synod of Dort, 1618-19. Although several new circum- 
stances had occurred, which rendered some alterations 
necessary, yet in their solemn revision of the Church 
orders, they retain almost word for word, the rules of 
the Synod held at the Hague, 1586, and whatever they 
judged to be local and temporary, they added afterwards 
in their post acta. If we apply this to ourselves, and 
wish to retain the same attachment to the ancient Re- 
formed Churches, our line for procedure will be easily 



PASTOR AND PROFESSOR IN NEW-YORK. 199 



marked out. * * * * Suppose we should, then, by a 
careful inspection from one article to another, collect 
a short but precise system of explanations, which, as the 
express work of our own Synod, may be added as an 
organizing act ; and then the original articles, together 
with our organization, will serve to exhibit a clear, and 
at the same time, a respectable Church order. * * * If 
we should adopt this mode, then the exact and prudent 
translation, etc, of the original articles will be only the 
smallest part of the work. Our post acta will require 
the greatest deliberation. In this view you will ac- 
quiesce in my expectation that the work can not be ready 
in May next, nor do I see any necessity of hurrying 
ourselves in such a manner as to produce an unfinished 
or undigested work. If such an idea should be adopted, 
as I have now mentioned, there would be no necessity 
for adding explanatory notes, and blotting our page 
with things which, perhaps, the people would not un- 
derstand ; but the whole that is local would appear in 
one intelligible act of organization. But I submit the 
idea to you, and wish you would please to drop a line 
as soon as you can." 

The work was arranged in conformity to the plan 
here suggested, presenting the practice of the Church, 
or the manner in which the Eules of Church Govern- 
ment of the National Synod of Dordrecht, are applied 
and executed in this country, in a set of explanatory 
articles, which were solemnly ratified in the General 
Synod held at New- York, the 10th day of October, 
1792 ; and it was afterwards published under the title 
of "The Constitution of the Keformed Dutch 
Church in the United States of America." 



200 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



The adoption of this constitution is a most memo- 
rable event, as it consolidated the union which had 
been so laboriously formed, and placed the Church 
in a position to maintain her character, to extend 
her influence ; and carry out all the designs of her 
existence. It would not be just to ascribe the whole 
credit of this performance to Dr. Livingston ; but his 
correspondence shows that as he was the first person to 
suggest the plan of such a work, so he was very largely 
engaged in the labor and responsibility of executing it. 
The Church grew and prospered under this constitu- 
tion for forty years, at the end of which period it was 
revised and digested into the form which it now has. 



"PASTOR AND PROFESSOR IN NEW- YORK. 203 



CHAPTEE VIII 

FROM THE ADOPTION OF THE CONSTITUTION OF THE 
CHURCH TILL HIS ACCEPTANCE OF THE CALL FROM 
NEW-BRUNSWICK. 

A. D. 1793-1810. 

The Constitution, being adopted by the General 
Synod, was published under the direction of Dr. Liv- 
ingston. Under date of May 4, 1793, he wrote to 
Dr. E. as follows : " I wish it was in my power to send 
you a copy of our Church Orders. They are in the 
press, and have been so for some weeks; but the 
printer, as usual, goes on slowly. I have thought it 
would be proper to insert after the articles of faith and 
catechism, the Canones Synodi Dort. Our young can- 
didates subscribe them ; and they ought to be well 
acquainted with them. Perhaps also a public testimony 
in favor of the peculiar doctrines of grace at this day, 
may be very proper not only, but even necessary. 
Pray is it your idea that we should omit, in the Church 
Orders of Dort, the particular phrases which express 
what relates to the magistrate ? or must we in the trans- 
lation put every word that is found in the original ? 
9* 



202 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



There is a note in the explanatory articles, which de- 
clares that we have omitted those peculiarities, and in 
the preface it can also be mentioned. Upon the whole, 
I think it will not only be more intelligible to our peo- 
ple, if we leave those parts out, but it will spare a num- 
ber of apologies and explanations we shall be for ever 
obliged to be making." 

In a letter of June, 179S, he informed him that the 
work was going on and far advanced, and then added : 
" I hope it will be executed in an acceptable manner. 
Some of the Anabaptists, in a letter, have expressed 
their uneasiness at the harsh expressions in our articles 
of faith respecting them. The people meant in those 
articles were then called Anabaptists ; but those who 
now pass by that name do not hold such sentiments. No- 
tice must be taken of that in the preface. I wish a 
note had been added at the foot of the articles, for it is 
not our design to give offense ; but the articles are al- 
ready struck off." 

The publication of the work was completed soon 
after, and in the preface he inserted a paragraph explan- 
atory of the terms which had been considered injurious 
to the character of the Baptist denomination in this 
country. 

The Doctor watched over the Church, as a tender 
and faithful parent watches over a beloved child ; and 
his position as the professor of theology gave him a kind 
of paternal influence in all her concerns. It was not 
viewed as indelicate obtrusion in him to offer his ad- 
vice, though it were not expressly solicited, upon any 
question of general importance. 

The trustees of Queen's College had, the preceding 



PASTOR AXD PROFESSOR IN NEW-YORK. 203 



year, with the approbation of the General Synod, made 
some attempts in the churches to increase the funds of 
their institution ; but these attempts proving only par- 
tially successful, they became discouraged, and desi- 
rous, it would seem, to rid themselves of a charge 
which had hitherto continually disappointed their hopes 
and involved them in trouble. A plan was now con- 
ceived for forming a union with the college at Prince- 
ton, and an overture with this intention was actually sub- 
mitted to the trustees of that college. When informa- 
tion of these facts reached New- York, the Doctor, with 
many others, was thrown into a state of painful anxiety, 
and felt much alarmed for the mischief which he fore- 
saw a measure so unadvised would, if pursued, inevita- 
bly produce. A meeting of the trustees being called 
shortly after to deliberate and decide upon the whole 
business, at the request of Dr. Linn, he presented a full 
expression of opinion in writing, which, it is pre- 
sumed, that gentleman read at the board. The paper 
containing this opinion was inclosed in the following 
letter : 

"My Dear Colleague: Agreeably to your re- 
quest, I have committed to writing my sentiments 
upon the proposed union between Brunswick and 
Princeton. It was impossible to communicate what 
I suppose to be the public opinion respecting this 
business, without being prolix upon some points. 
As you wish for full information, you will readily 
excuse the length of the inclosed. I need not tell 
you, that I am perfectly indifferent, as to myself, and 
feel wholly independent of any consequences which 



204 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



may arise from the issue of this question, be the deter- 
mination whatever it may. But I acknowledge myself 
greatly concerned for the Church, of Christ, and am a 
sincere friend to both colleges. From the enlarged 
and proper views you have of this matter, I am con- 
fident you will bring conviction to those who have 
hitherto considered the subject in a different light. I 
wish you may be an instrument, in this instance also, 
of doing great good for Zion. Be assured of my esteem, 
and sincere respect and affection, and that I am ever 
" Totus tuus, 

" J. H. Livingston. 

"October 25, 1793." 

The paper is headed, " Observations upon the Over- 
ture respecting an Union between the College at Bruns- 
wick and that at Princeton;" and commences thus: 
4 1 It is reported that the trustees of the college at 
Brunswick have appointed a committee to meet with a 
committee from the college at Princeton, in order to 
devise a plan for uniting those two institutions ; that 
the two committees have met and formed a plan ; the 
outlines of which are, that both the colleges shall sur- 
render their charters, and obtain one new charter, 
which shall establish the college at Princeton, compre- 
hend the funds of both, and increase the number of 
trustees, the one half of which shall be from among 
the trustees of each college respectively ; and that an 
academy shall be erected at Brunswick, under the 
immediate care and patronage of the trustees." 

The paper is too long to be inserted entire, but a few 
extracts will show the manner in which he treated the 
subject. In the introduction he says : 



PASTOR AND PROFESSOR IN NEW-YORK. 205 



M It is not tlie intention of the writer of these obser- 
vations to call in question the principles or conduct of 
any concerned in the overture now before the public. 
He knows the persons to be men of honor and con- 
science, and is convinced that they aim at the glory of 
God and the good of mankind ; but he is equally con- 
vinced that the subject has not been thoroughly inves- 
tigated, nor the nature and effects of the plan fully 
examined. He needs no apology for the freedom he 
takes. He is conscious of bis benevolence, and knows 
lie is actuated by a sincere and disinterested desire of 
preventing good men from doing what, in the issue, 
may prove an irremediable evil. "With, the utmost 
plainness and candor, therefore, lie will first examine 
whether the steps already taken and the plan proposed 
by the trustees of Queens College, in then late over- 
ture, are justifiable and ought to be pursued. And 
then, if it shall appear the plan is impracticable, point 
out what can and ought to be done, to answer the de- 
sign of the institution, and meet the expectations and 
wishes of its friends and patrons." These and a few 
more conciliatory remarks being made, he glances at 
the manner in which the business had been conducted 
thus far, and then particularly considers the plan pro- 
posed. 

His arguments against the adoption of the plan are 
irresistible. He proves, in the first place, that " Two 
institutions seated at a distance from each other, and 
supported by different interests, can never be united. 
The funds of one may be given away to the other ; but 
to call that a union, would be an abuse of language." 
In the second place, that " admitting an union with 



206 MEMOIE OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



Princeton to be possible, admitting the trustees possess 
a power in law to surrender their charter, and give 
away their funds to any person or institution they may 
choose," it would be, nevertheless, very improper for 
them to do so, and would involve a violation of solemn 
obligations. At the close of this argument, he observes : 
" When Hackensack repeatedly offered to give several 
thousand pounds, if the college might be moved to 
that place, it was always strenuously objected by the 
trustees that such removal was impracticable ; that it 
would be a betraying of the public trust and confidence ; 
that the moneys had been expressly given in the ex- 
pectation of their being expended in Brunswick, and 
that, therefore, no temptation or offer could justify them 
in removing the institution. But if a bare removal, 
when the charter, the nature of the College, and its 
patrons still remained the same, would operate to a be- 
traying of the public faith, what must be thought, and 
what will be thought, of a plan which effects not only 
a removal, but an alienation of the funds, with the 
total extinction of the charter, and all the hopes and 
expectations of its friends and benefactors?" 

In discussing the second thing, " What can and ought 
to be done to answer the design of the institution?" he 
says, "That the charter of Queen's College was ob- 
tained by the immediate agency and influence of several 
pious ministers and members of the Dutch Church, with 
a particular design of rendering it subservient to a re- 
gular theological education, and to prepare young men 
for the ministry of the Gospel. That while in its first 
organization, from a want of competent funds, attention 
was only paid to the usual studies pursued in other 



PASTOR AND PROFESSOR IN NEW-YORK. 207 



colleges, yet the main object was never lost sight of by 
its well-informed friends and benefactors. That Queen's 
College was early recommended to the Synod of the 
Dutch churches, as an institution immediately adapted 
and intended to supply the wants of the churches, and 
was warmly and uniformly patronized by the Synod, 
for that very purpose, as appears by a variety of minutes 
entered, year after year, upon their records ; and the 
late efforts made by the Synod in its behalf prove that 
the Dutch churches, notwithstanding the backward- 
ness of some of the trustees to meet the wishes of the 
churches in their favorite object, still retained their 
attachment to the college, and still cherished a con- 
fidence that the trustees would ultimately cooperate in 
rendering Queen's College particularly useful for the 
very end for which the charter was obtained. That 
while Brunswick yields from necessity, as well as prin- 
ciple, to Princeton, and cheerfully consents to let that 
elder and very respectable institution continue the un- 
rivalled seat of literature, Queen's College can yet, with 
propriety and dignity, prosecute that other end which 
was expressly contemplated from the beginning. So 
far, then, from annihilating the charter, or taking steps 
which distress the public mind and create new feuds, let 
the charter and the trustees remain without any altera- 
tion, as they now are ; if nothing was in prospect, it 
would still be advisable to keep the whole in being ; 
let it rather lie dormant until something can be done, 
but let it not be prematurely slain." 

"But something can be done; the very thing for 
which the charter was obtained is now within the 
reach of the trustees. Let a divinity hall be erected, 



208 MEMOIE OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON, 



and the funds at Brunswick be immediately and solely 
applied to the support of as many professors in theolo- 
gy as shall be found necessary and practicable." 

" The execution of this plan can be effected inde- 
pendently of any union, either nominal or real, with 
any other institution, and will undoubtedly operate 
best, when least entangled with collateral stipulations. 
But if any fraternal overtures can be devised, which 
will extinguish former jealousies, and promote mutual 
confidence with Princeton, it may not only be very de- 
sirable in the first instance, but may eventually pro- 
duce an intercourse and affection which will promote 
the common interests of truth and religion, and finally 
bring the Presbyterian and Dutch Churches much 
nearer to each other than any forced measures and un- 
popular plans can possibly effect. The college at 
Brunswick may, perhaps safely engage with that at 
Princeton, to drop the whole undergraduate education, 
and give no degrees of Bachelor or Master, but always 
recommend the students from their academy to Prince- 
ton. The trustees of the latter may engage to appoint 
no professor in theology, but to acquiesce in the pro- 
fessorate established by the trustees in Brunswick, 
with the approbation of the Synod of the Dutch 
churches, and to recommend their students in theology 
always to Brunswick. Both may unite to promote the 
interests of both, and mutually endeavor to increase 
the funds of each other for the respective objects they 
pursue." 

These extracts are sufficient to exhibit the drift of 
this communication. In a letter to Dr. T. Komeyn, 
dated January 21, 1794, he says : " You have no 



PASTOR AND PEOFESSOR IN NEW-YORK, 209 



doubt heard that, at a meeting of the trustees of 
Brunswick College, the overtures presented by a com- 
mittee, respecting an union with Princeton, were re- 
scinded, in consequence of which, the affairs of that in- 
stitution are reverted to, or rather continue in, their 
former state. "What the trustees will next resolve, I 
do not know, nor do I believe they know themselves. 
I have understood from some of them, that they expect 
the Synod will give them advice, or make some pro- 
posals to them ; but I have seen only one or two of 
them ; what the sentiments of the board, or the major- 
ity of them are, I do not know. Whether they will 
not let the whole lie dormant, and nurse their fond un- 
til some future day, or whether they will still try to do 
something is, I believe, uncertain ; and by what I can 
learn, no particular plan is as yet formed by them." 

Such was the termination of an affair which awak- 
ened a good deal of feeling in the Church ; and it is 
not improbable that, for that termination, the Church 
is much indebted to the seasonable and cogent remon- 
strance of the Doctor, supported and enforced, as it no 
doubt was, by the powerful eloquence of Dr. Linn. 

In private life Dr. Livingston was a pattern of the 
Christian gentleman. The habitual piety and gentle- 
ness of his deportment made his house the abode of or- 
der, peace, and love, and letters which remain furnish 
pleasing evidence of his amiable conduct in every do- 
mestic relation. In his tender solicitude for his family, 
the strength of natural affection was heightened and 
sanctified by Christian principle. His intercourse with 
fellow-laborers in the Gospel was exceedingly happy. 



210 MEMOIE OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 

The city of New- York had been for several years unusu- 
ally favored in the eminence of the men who occupied 
the chief pulpits of the different denominations. One of 
these, theEev. John Mason, D. D., of the Associate Ee- 
formed Church, had recently died. His name has been 
absorbed in the brilliant reputation of his son, the late 
John M. Mason, D. D., but his piety, learning, and other 
gifts were such as to lead Dr. Linn, his neighbor and 
friend, to say of him : " His congregation have erected 
a handsome monument to his memory ; but the most 
honorable monument is the place which he holds in 
their hearts and the lasting esteem of all who knew 
him." Another of them, the Eev. John Eoclgers, D.D., 
of the Presbyterian Church, has been worthily por- 
trayed in a biography from the pen of the late Dr. Mil- 
ler, of Princeton. A third, the Eev. John C. Kunzic, 
D.D., of the Lutheran Church, had come in the year 
1770 from the University of Leipzie to Philadelphia, 
but shortly after the war was settled in New- York. 
He was a man of profound learning, one of the best 
Hebraists of his day, for several years Professor of Ori- 
ental Languages in Columbia College, and at the same 
time a very acceptable and useful preacher. With all 
of these Dr. Livingston cultivated a cordial intimacy, 
as with brethren in Christ. There never, perhaps, were 
four ministers residing in the same city, each belonging 
to a different branch of the Church, who afforded in 
their personal and official intercourse a brighter exhi- 
bition of Christian love. 

Dr. L. was naturally of a sociable disposition, and a 
large circle of other than ministerial friends claimed his 
friendly attentions. But he seldom paid a visit, whether 



PAST0E AXD PE0FESS0E EN XEVT-YOEK. 211 



pastoral or merely social, without endeavoring to ren- 
der the conversation instructive and edifying. And he 
took particular pains, when thrown into company with 
youth, whether of his own Church or not, to speak so 
as to make some salutary and lasting impression on 
their minds ; and in this few men were more successful. 
In illustration of this trait of his character, we may 
quote a letter to him from the late celebrated Lindley 
Murray, and another from his brother John, both dis- 
tinguished members of the Society of Friends, relating 
to interviews with him, which it is supposed occurred 
soon after the war. 

i 

The letter of Lindley Murray is in these words : 
" I beg that Dr. Livingston will do me the favor to 
accept a copy of the new edition of my English Gram- 
mar, as a small mark of the high esteem and regard 
which I have long entertained for him. I still remem- 
ber, with grateful emotion, the short interview which I 
had with Dr. Livingston, about twenty years ago. The 
affectionate inquiries which he then made respecting 
my health, his Christian temper and deportment, and 
the unfeigned piety of his remark, 1 that as all our 
blessings come from the Fountain of Goodness, they 
ought to be received with corresponding gratitude,' left 
a most pleasing and consolatory impression, which, I 
believe, will never be effaced from my recollection.'' 

" Since that period, it has pleased Divine Providence 
to visit me with a very gentle affliction, if it can be 
called an affliction at all, when so many blessings are 
continued : I have not been able to walk, or to use any 
exercise, except that of riding in a carriage. I am. 



212 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



however, comforted in believing that my life, in this 
confinement, has not been entirely useless. I have 
composed a number of little volumes for the benefit of 
the rising generation; and the success which has attend- 
ed these publications, affords me much comfort, and 
abundant cause of thankfulness to the great Preserver 
of my life. 

" I am, with great respect and affection, Dr. Living- 
ston's very sincere friend, 

" Lindley Murray. 

" Holdgate, near York, \ 
Great-Britain, 1805." J 

His brother's leter is of a latter date, and concludes as 
follows : 

" Almost as long as I have any clear recollection of 
occurrences in my juvenile days, I remember my friend, 
Doctor Livingston — even the simple circumstance of 
his putting his hands occasionally on my head, in a 
pleasant manner, when we used to meet at our old 
neighbor Kipp's, at Kipp's Bay. Since which I have 
entertained a regard for thee, and may now say, I re- 
newedly feel my mind impressed with a solicitude for 
thy welfare in time, and for thy happiness in futurity. 
May thy setting sun go down with increased bright- 
ness, is the sincere desire of, 

" Thy well-wishing friend, 

" John Murray, Jr." 

The Doctor rarely knew what it was to be in perfect 
health, or entirely free from ailment : the pressure of 



PASTOE AXD PEOFESSOE IX NEW-YOBE. 213 



Mb numerous cares and employments, of a public and 
private nature, he often felt very sensibly to be too 
great for his strength : lie was at times much debili- 
tated, and afflicted with a pain in his breast ; but the 
Lord enabled him to hold on his work, and he was sel- 
dom so very unwell as to be compelled to intermit his 
regular service in the pulpit. 

About the close of 1792, his labors were considera- 
bly augmented, in consequence of the serious indispo- 
sition of his colleague, Dr. Linn, who was threatened 
with pulmonic disease, and obliged, therefore, for a sea- 
son, to desist from preaching. In a letter to Dr. E — — , 
of January, 1793, he thus noticed the occurrence : 
" May the Lord Jesus become more precious to your 
soul, and you rejoice in a full assurance of his love ! 
With respect to myself, I bless his holy name, I am 
strengthened in weakness, and enabled to hold on, with 
a desire to be found faithful until death. I am sorry to 
inform you, that my dear colleague, Linn, has some 
very unfavorable symptoms, which have greatly alarmed 
us. About four weeks ago, he began to spit some 
blood mixed with his saliva. This is considered by 
his physicians as an intimation of an approaching con- 
sumption, and requires great attention and care. He has 
not preached since the first appearance of that symp- 
tom ; and it is to be feared he will not preach in some 
length of time. What the consequence will be, can 
not be foreseen, but it is conjectured his future health 
and labors are very precarious." In another, dated 
May 4, 1793, to the same, he observed: "I have had 
very steady, and considerable heavy service, the whole 
winter and spring. Dr. Linn expects to preach to-mor- 



214 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



row morning, for the first time since tbe beginning of 
last December." In another, of May 11 : " My labors, 
the winter and spring past, have been increased and 
uniform, without any intermission. Last Lord's day, 
Dr. Linn preached for the first time. His health ap- 
pears to be restored, and I hope there is a prospect of 
his doing well, without any danger of relapses." And 
again, in one written the following August : " I greatly 
sympathize with the destitute congregations, and trust 
the Lord will send laborers in his harvest soon, to sup- 
ply our numerous vacancies. There are five or six 
now with me, who are diligent in their studies, and of 
whom we may hope much good. I most sincerely 
wish it was in my power to do greater justice to them ; 
but, while incumbered with the full weight of the pa- 
rochialia, it is utterly impossible. [His other colleague, 
Dr. Kuypers, at this time preached only in the Dutch 
language.] Perhaps it may please the Lord to direct, 
in his good providence, and in his own time, what shall 
answer our desire." 

It was impossible for him, in present circumstances, 
to give that attention to professional duties, which his 
own sense of their intrinsic importance, and a due 
regard to the improvement of the young gentlemen 
under his care, prompted him to render ; and the Gen- 
eral Synod, at length, became convinced that it was 
necessary to adopt some measures, that would place 
their professor in a situation to be more devoted to the 
appropriate business of his office. Accordingly, at a 
meeting of the Synod, held in Albany, June, 1794, the 
subject of the Professorate was taken into serious con- 
sideration, and a committee, of which Dr. T. Eomeyn 



PASTOR AND PROFESSOR IN NEW- YORK, 215 



was chairman, was appointed, "to consult and report 
on the same." The report submitted was adopted by 
the Synod, and was as follows : 

"1. That it is high time to bring this important 
matter to a conclusion. Ten years have elapsed since 
the professor was appointed, and no effective arrange- 
ments have yet been made to enable him to fulfill the 
duties of his appointment. The place where the 
divinity hall is to be opened, the salary to be allowed 
the professor, and some productive measures to insure 
a sufficient fund, ought, without further delay, to be 
now determined." 

"2. That to establish an union of the professorate 
with Queen's College, which has hitherto been judged 
practicable and advisable, it is the opinion of the Com- 
mittee, that it will be necessary to remove the college 
from its present situation, and bring it to some place 
more accessible, and nearer to the great body of the 
churches, which lie in the northern parts of the State 
of New- York : your Committee, therefore, recommend 
that it should be fixed at the town of Bergen, or at 
such other place, still farther to the North, in the State 
of New-Jersey, as may be agreed upon between the 
trustees of the college and the General Synod." 

"3. That to effect this removal of the college, a 
committee be appointed on the part of this General 
Synod, to confer with the trustees of the college, and 
endeavor to persuade them to relinquish the present 
place in which the college is fixed, and to meet the 
wishes of the General Synod, in a location that will 
be more commodious for the benefit of the churches." 



216 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



"4, That as the overtures made to the trustees of 
the college may prove unsuccessful, the General 
Synod ought now to determine that, in such case, the 
place where the divinity hall must be opened, with- 
out being connected with any college whatever, shall 
be in the vicinity of the city of New- York ; where the 
students may find all the benefits of cheapness and re- 
tirement, peculiar to a village, and yet be sufficiently 
near to the metropolis to derive all the advantages 
arising from a free and easy intercourse with the literary 
and public characters which abound in a city." 

"5. That your Committee, after mature considera- 
tion, are of opinion, that the town , of Flatbush, upon 
Long-Island, is a proper place where the divinity 
hall may be opened ; and, therefore, recommend the 
same to Synod for that purpose. A flourishing aca- 
demy is there established, which will afford an oppor- 
tunity for the students in theology to revise their other 
studies, and advance in collateral branches of educa- 
tion ; and Flatbush comprises all the advantages result- 
ing from a village situated near a city." 

" 6. That in the present situation of the professor- 
ate, while the Synod is destitute of funds to render 
their appointment independent, and while the professor 
remains in any measure connected with the congrega- 
tion at New- York, means should be used to prevail 
upon that Consistory and congregation, to consent to a 
dispensation of a part of the parochial duties of the 
professor, and to obtain from them, for the benefit of 
all the churches, that he shall be held to preach only 
once on every Lord's day, and attend the consistorial 
meetings, when necessary and convenient; but that 



PASTOR AKD PROFESSOR IN NEW- YORK. 217 



the remainder of his time and labor, which may be 
four days in every week, shall be by him devoted to 
the immediate business of his appointment, as professor 
in theology." 

"7. That for this purpose, a committee be also ap- 
pointed, to confer with the professor and the Consistory 
of the Church at New- York, and to make such 
arrangements with the said Consistory, in relation to 
the salary of the professor, as shall be honorable and 
equitable." 

u 8. That upon settling what may be necessary with 
the congregation of New- York, the professor be re- 
quested to embrace the first prudent measures of retire- 
ment to any place contiguous to the said city, which 
he may judge most convenient and eligible for prose- 
cuting the important duties of the professorate, as long 
as he remains connected with the ministerial duties in 
the city ; and that the Synod engage to give him all 
their support and countenance ; while they strenuously, 
in the mean time, exert themselves to obtain the means 
for fixing him in a proper and independent manner, at 
the place determined on as the most suitable for a di- 
vinity hall." 

"9. That the General Synod do immediately, and 
without delay, take the most effectual measures for 
raising a fund, to render their professorate independent 
of any particular or individual congregation ; and for 
that purpose, the Committee recommend, that the 
former resolution respecting collections to be made in 
all the churches, and which was revived in the last 
Particular Synod, be now adopted and made to origi- 
nate, with renewed vigor, from this General Synod ; 



10 



218 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



with this variation only, that instead of constituting 
the Consistory of New-York the keepers of the fund to 
be raised, there be three persons joined with Mr. Peter 
Wilson, who shall be trustees for that purpose, until 
some other measures be adopted by the General Synod, 
for rendering the agency in that business more safe and 
easy." 

" 10. That as it is the object and wish of the Synod 
to obtain the assistance of more than one professor, as 
soon as the churches shall put it in the power of Synod 
to maintain more, so the Committee recommend that this 
be held up to the public view, as an inducement to in- 
crease the funds, and render them productive for sup- 
porting not only one, but a sufficient number, if possi- 
ble, to constitute a faculty of theology." 

" 11. As it appears from a representation made to this 
General Synod, by a committee from the trustees of 
Queen's College, that no union of that institution with 
the trustees of Princeton College has taken place, or 
will probably be ever again attempted, the Committee 
recommend that the act of the last Particular Synod, 
prohibiting the payment of certain moneys collected 
conditionally, under the patronage of the Synod, in 
favor of the College of Brunswick, be no longer in force ; 
but that the persons holding any such moneys thus col- 
lected, do forthwith remit the same to the trustees of 
Queen's College, or pay them to their order." 

In pursuance of the request contained in this import- 
ant document, the Doctor, as soon as he could con- 
veniently, made the necessary arrangements for a 
removal. The Consistory of the Church consented to 



PASTOR AST) PROFESSOR IN NEW-YORK. 219 



what the Synod had proposed, with the understanding 
that he should receive, while he rendered them but 
half the usual service, but half the usual salary, which 
was certainly a reasonable stipulation ; and, to supply 
the lack of service that would be caused by his removal, 
in the autumn of 1795 they called the Bev. John X. 
Abeel of Philadelphia, (see Appendix Gr,) to become 
one of their pastors. The following spring, he left the 
city, to occupy a place which he had purchased at Bed- 
ford, a little village on Long-Island, about two miles 
from Brooklyn ; and here, when fixed in his new re- 
sidence, he opened his disunity hall with very cheering 
prospects. 

But in complying with the wishes of the Synod, he 
not only sustained a considerable pecuniary loss, as he 
relinquished a moiety of his regular stipend from the 
Church ; and numerous perquisites which, as its senior 
minister, he had been in the habit of receiving, but also 
subjected himself to no little inconvenience and expo- 
sure of health and life. There were at that time no steam- 
boats moving upon our waters ; and the passage between 
Long-Island and New- York, in the boats then in use, 
was seldom agreeable, and often, especially in the winter 
season, very dangerous ; but he must be every Sabbath, 
at least once, in his pulpit ; and other duties would 
make it necessary for him frequently to visit the city. 
In this view, and taking into consideration the fact 
that he had nothing to expect from the Synod but their 
approbation — that they could neither make nor promise 
him any other remuneration — it must be confessed that 
he now made sacrifices, and evinced a disinterestedness, 
a submissive temper, and a regard for the good of the 



220 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



Church at large, which justly entitled him to respect 
and gratitude. 

The great motive to a removal was the hope of being, 
in this situation, more useful as professor, than he had 
ever been before : and, for a while, the hope was par- 
tially realized. Well known as a sound and learned 
divine, having the requisite leisure for the due perform- 
ance of his duty, and the expense of boarding in the 
country being much less than in the city, the number 
of students immediately increased, and he was encour- 
aged to believe, that the plan which had been adopted 
for establishing a theological school would be crowned 
with complete success ; but his expectations were soon 
and suddenly disappointed. The promise of support 
and countenance which the Synod had given was not 
fulfilled, or rather was hastily, in effect, retracted ; and 
very soon, notwithstanding all the sacrifices he had 
made to carry out their plan, he was compelled to 
abandon it and return to the city. 

It is not necessary to state in detail the manner in 
which the Doctor conducted his little seminary. It will 
suffice to observe, that he ably and satisfactorily dis- 
charged his whole duty. He taught theology,, system- 
atically, in a course of lectures, in which the doctrines 
of the Eeformation were fully discussed and main- 
tained ; and he possessed the faculty of imparting his 
own sound, clear, comprehensive views of divine truth, 
so as to carry conviction to the understanding and to 
make a deep impression upon the heart. The method 
he adopted to qualify his pupils for the important office 
they had in view, was highly approved ; and his de- 
portment towards them was uniformly pleasant, affec- 
tionate, and paternal. They revered and loved him. 



PASTOR AND PROFESSOR EST NEW- YORK. 221 



The following extracts from two letters to his friend, 
Dr. E., will sliow what were his present sentiments and 
feelings upon the subject of the interesting institution. 
The first is dated October 13, 1796 : 

" I wished much to have consulted with you upon 
the important subject of the professorate, which, not- 
withstanding all the repeated efforts in its favor, and 
the prudent and decisive resolutions of the last General 
Synod, remains wholly neglected and abandoned. I 
have complied with the wishes of the Synod in remov- 
ing from the city, and relinquishing a part of my 
parochial duties, for the express purpose of having it 
more in my power to do justice to the young gentle- 
men. Since I have retired, I find more leisure for that 
work, and am happy to know that the students find 
greater advantages than it was possible for them while 
I remained in the city. But amidst all my exertions, 
and the sacrifices which I have made to bring it thus 
far, it is still impossible the institution can ever answer 
the expectations of the churches, unless it is patronized 
and countenanced by the public. Public bodies, who 
feel an interest in its prosperity, must turn their atten- 
tion to it, and support it with their influence and smiles, 
or it will at farthest soon die with the individual. 7 ' 

" Upon taking a candid review of all the embarrass- 
ments with which this institution has struggled, and 
the neglect that has attended it, I have been obliged 
to conclude that whatever might have been the serious 
determination of those of 1771, who formed the union, 
or of 1784, who instituted the office, it appears that it 
is not the present intention of the most of our churches 



222 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



to have it brought to a proper issue ; that as long as I 
continue, by my private efforts, to supply the public 
wants, nothing decisive will be done; and that, if it 
remains dormant much longer, it will sleep the sleep 
of death, and all our resolutions, our promises to the 
churches in Holland, and our serious and solemn 
engagements to our own churches here, will end in 
disappointment." 

" Under these impressions, I conceived it my duty to 
present to the Synod a plain statement of facts, to as- 
sure them that I was willing to proceed, and devote 
the remains of my short life to this important work, 
but that I wished for their advice to know what would 
be the most proper and effectual measures to bring the 
whole to a decided issue. To this, the Synod have re- 
quested me to proceed in my labors with the students, 
as heretofore, and have determined that it was incum- 
bent on them to carry into effect the resolutions of the 
General Synod, and, for that purpose, have concluded 
to send circular letters to all the congregations. What 
the result will be can not be foreseen ; but it is certain, 
if our churches entertain a just sense of the necessity of 
the institution ; if they reflect that it is impossible to 
be supplied with orthodox and acceptable ministers, 
unless some establishment is formed for their educa- 
tion ; if they do not choose to be beholden to other 
denominations for the instruction of their candidates ; 
if they wish to adhere to their own discipline, and 
maintain their reputation and usefulness ; and if they 
consider it ungenerous for a numerous, wealthy, and 
great community to suffer any individual member to 
bear the whole weight alone, and that it will be im- 



PASTOR AND PROFESSOR IN NEW- YORK. 228 



possible long to sustain the discouragements which 
arise from the public neglect ; it will be easy for them 
to unite their influence and friendly attention, and 
bring forward a fund that shall suffice to render the in- 
stitution independent and respectable." 

" For my own part, as it regards myself, I think I 
have sufficiently proved my disinterestedness. I have 
been silent, passive, and contented; and I am thus 
far contented still ; but I am convinced, if ever the 
institution is to be brought forward, and rendered exten- 
sively useful when you and I are gathered to our fathers 
— if our children and their posterity are to reap the 
benefits of it, something decisive and spirited must 
now be effected." 

The second is dated Bedford, April 28, 1797. 

" If the issue of the business respecting the resolutions 
of the General Synod, be the same in all the classes 
with what you mention to have been in yours of Jan- 
uary last, we may readily anticipate that nothing will 
in this way be done ; and, perhaps, it is become alto- 
gether impracticable, in the present state of the public 
mind, to raise a fund at all. The want of zeal in pro- 
moting a cause so interesting and influential to the wel- 
fare, and even existence, of our reformed churches, is 
greatly to be lamented, and may constitute a neglect for 
which, as a people, we shall be severely responsible. 
He who walketh in the midst of the golden candlesticks, 
and holdeth the stars in his right hand, will know and 
judge, with unerring precision, respecting motives, ex- 
cuses, and conduct." 

" Solemn and repeated resolutions, formed upon ma- 



224 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



tare deliberation and clear conviction, have certainly 
produced obligations too strong and binding to be now 
lightly abandoned. Notwithstanding delays and fre- 
quent discouragements, we are still bound by every 
principle sacred to conscience and character, to make 
the most decisive trials, and not despair of the divine 
blessing and concurrence upon earnest and faithful 
efforts. * * * If the plan, in one form, will not at 
present prevail, is it not possible to devise another 
mode, in which it may, for some time at least, prove 
successful ? If it be impracticable to raise a whole 
fund whose interest would suffice, may it not be easy to 
obtain annually from all the churches, what would 
amount at least to as much as the interest ? This, if 
punctually executed, would serve as a temporary ex- 
pedient, and leave the fund where it now is, in the 
possession of the people." 

" I have, for some years, considered an alternative 
as very practicable, and, perhaps, proper ; but from a 
determination of remaining as long as possible passive 
and silent in all that relates to this business, I do not 
remember that I have ever communicated it to you. 
Whether it would be found as easy in its operation, 
and sufficiently productive as it appears in theory, or 
whether some consequences would not arise from it 
which would prove injurious to the object in view, I 
do not know. It is simply this : that, instead of col- 
lecting a sum which shall amount to a capital, as at pre- 
sent contemplated, we only determine to raise every 
year a small dividend from each congregation, which 
can be effected without any particular effort on the 
part of the people, and may, if properly appropriated, 
in some measure answer the purpose of the Synod," 



PASTOR AND PROFESSOR IN NEW- YORK. 225 



" Upon contemplating this alternative, I think I find, 
instead of insuperable objections, something which 
may, in its consequences, even prove beneficial. It is, 
indeed, leaving the institution precarious ; but it renders 
it immediately dependent upon those for whose use it is 
intended, and may prove a proper stimulus to industry 
and faithfulness. At any rate I conceive it to be the 
only mode that is now practicable, and less calculated 
to cheapen the institution than to raise, by personal ap- 
plications, a fund. I mention it without reserve now 
to you, that you may digest it and make such improve- 
ments upon it as a mature consideration may suggest. 
May the Lord direct to such measures as shall pre- 
serve the engagements of Synod inviolate, and pre- 
vent those who have relied upon its sacred honor 
and risked every thing upon it, from being made 
ashamed.' 5 

"Whatever solicitude or zeal particular individuals 
may have manifested to redeem the pledge which had 
been given by the Synod to the Professor — and there 
no doubt were a few who exerted themselves to the 
utmost of their ability — it is certain that a very culpable 
indifference pervaded the Church as a body. Nothing 
of any consequence was done ; and when but little 
more than a year had elapsed since his removal to Bed- 
ford at the request of the Synod, the Doctor found him- 
self placed very unexpectedly, by another act of Synod, 
in a situation at once mortifying and embarrassing. 

The General Synod met again in June, 1797 ; and 
the following is a copy of the record of part of their 
proceedings : 

10* 



226 



MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



" The General S} r nod having minutely inquired into 
the measures pursued time after time, in order to raise 
a fund for the support of the professorate, and the * 
success of those measures, the following question was 
taken : Is it expedient, under present circumstances, to 
take any further measures for the support of the pro- 
fessorate ? which was answered in the negative." 

" The General Synod then appointed a committee 
on this business, who brought in a report, which after 
being amended, was agreed to, and reads as follows, 
namely : The committee appointed on the professorate, 
report : that Professor Livingston ought to be immedi- 
ately informed of the determination of Synod, that it is 
not expedient, under present circumstances, to take any 
further measures for the support of the professorate ; 
that they express to him the sense which they enter- 
tain of the important services which he has already 
performed ; that it will be highly acceptable to them, 
if he can still continue to discharge the duties of the 
office under the discouragements that exist ; and that 
a minute of the determination referred to, with this 
report, be transmitted to him for the purposes above 
mentioned." 

At this session, the Eev. Dr. T. Eomeyn and the 
Rev. Solomon Froeligh were appointed additional pro- 
fessors of theology. These gentlemen had been au- 
thorized, at least since the year 1794, to act as assistant 
teachers of theology, probably at first for the accommo- 
dation of young men who could not well afford the 
expense of boarding in New- York ; but their students 
could not be admitted to an examination for licensure, 



PASTOR AND PROFESSOR IN NEW-YORK. 227 

without Laying previously obtained the certificate of 
the regular professor, and to supersede the necessity, 
which had been often attended with much incon- 
venience, of applying for such certificates, they were 
now duly invested with the professorial office. 

Since the measure adopted by the Synod amounted 
in fact to a complete desertion of the seminary, the 
Doctor, of course, returned to the city and resumed all 
his pastoral duties. Such young men as wished to prose- 
cute their studies under his direction, were still cheer- 
fully and faithfully attended to ; but, for several suc- 
ceeding years, he was chiefly devoted to the beloved 
people of his charge, among whom his labors continued 
to be acceptable and useful. 

No event occurred after this, worthy of particular 
notice, until the year 1804, when the plan of the pro- 
fessorate underwent another important alteration. The 
Doctor, meanwhile, as a lover of peace, quietly ac- 
quiesced in the arrangements which the Synod had 
thought proper to make. He showed no resentment, 
and uttered no complaints. That he considered 
himself slighted, and that his feelings were deeply 
wounded by what the Synod had done, it is natural 
to suppose ; but whether such was the case or not, his 
conduct under it was meek and dignified ; and, indeed, 
he knew his brethren too well to imagine for a moment, 
that they had not honestly consulted the existing state 
of the Church, without intending him an ill requital, 
or designing to convey any unfavorable sentiment with 
respect to his services. 

For Dr. Eomeyn, between whom and himself it 
might have been surmised there would be now some 



228 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



little rivalry, lie appears to have cherished undiminish- 
ed affection ; and pleasing evidence of the fact will be 
found in the following extracts from two letters of 
friendship to that gentleman, and from one to his son 
upon the occasion of the father's death. 

In one, dated New-York, August 27, 1802, after 
adverting to the late indisposition of his friend, he thus 
writes : 

M In every period of life, we are exposed to strokes 
that may weaken, or even destroy, our feeble frames. 
At the stage to which you and I are arrived, we must 
not therefore be surprised or discouraged to meet with 
what others, at a much earlier hour, have had to 
struggle. I am confident you view the dispensation as 
you ought, and feel that resignation which is at once 
an evidence of divine grace in the soul, and a sure 
source of contentment and peace. To look unto Jesus, 
to renew the covenant with him, and to know in our 
blessed experience, that he is made of God unto us, 
wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, afford 
substantial comfort in the severest trials, and increase 
our assurance that he will also to us become redemp- 
tion. Such views and efforts of faith produce strength 
equal to our day, and excite, at times, a joy unspeaka- 
ble and full of glory." 

" He whom we serve, and whose we are, has said, and 
he can and will confirm his word, that all things shall 
work together for good to them who love God ; and 
his people have always put their seal to this precious 
promise, and, sooner or later, been made to exclaim : 1 It 
is good for us that we have been afflicted. ' It must be so. 



PASTOR AKD PROFESSOR IN KEW-YORK. 229 



All pains, sickness, disappointments and trials of every 
kind, are in themselves bitter, and no chastening for 
the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous ; never- 
theless, afterwards it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of 
righteousness to them which are exercised thereby. 
Sanctified afflictions are among the precious benefits of 
the everlasting covenant, Through all the changing 
scenes and various ways in which his saints are led, 
however intricate, gloomy, and unexpected they may 
prove, he has pledged his truth that he will guide them 
by his counsel, support them with his grace, and never 
leave nor forsake them. May you, my dear friend, be 
comforted with these consolations, and bear constant 
testimony to the faithfulness and fullness, the love and 
power of our adorable Kedeemer." 

u You and I are nearly of the same age; I am in 
my 57th year. We are thus literally fellow-travellers, 
engaged together from our youth in one and the same 
work. It affords high satisfaction to have cause to 
hope, that we have in our day been of some use in the 
Church of Christ, and obtained grace to be in our 
measure faithful to the trust reposed in us. Happy 
should we be if, in the retrospect, we could find more 
zeal, purer exertions, in the service of the greatest and 
best of masters. The Lord strengthen and sanctify us, 
that we may continue faithful and useful even to the 
end of life ; that our last fruit may be the ripest ; and 
our setting sun shine bright and serene." 

"What the spirit of infidelity may yet produce, 
with what opposition the disciples of the Lord J esus will 
have to combat, and what may be particularly im- 
pending over that part of the Church with which we 



230 



MEMOIR OP JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



are more immediately connected, are impossible to be 
foreseen ; and it is best that future events should thus 
far be covered with an impenetrable veil. Enough, 
however, may be anticipated to prompt to double vigi- 
lance, and justify us in recommending vigor and pa- 
tience, rmanimity and fortitude, to our younger brethren, 
who are to remain as watchmen when we are gone, and 
are to stand where we stood on the walls of Zion. I 
trust God will preserve these, and raise up others, who 
shall with them become faithful witnesses for his truth 
and cause, and that he will crown their labors with his 
blessing. At times, I have been greatly discouraged, 
and from a variety of concurring circumstances, have 
feared that the blessing we once expected would never 
be realized, and that the day for effecting any thing 
important has been suffered to pass unimproved ; but I 
have learned to dispel anxious fears, and patiently to 
wait and humbly hope in the Lord. In his own time, 
in his own way, and by his own instruments, he will 
work all his pleasure, and his poor people who trust in 
him shall never be made ashamed. In this confidence, 
my dear Sir, we may put up our prayers in faith, and 
rest assured that if we do not, yet our successors will, 
see the goodness of Grod to his chosen, and rejoice in 
his mercies upon Zion." 

" Whenever I come in the northern quarter, I pro- 
mise myself the pleasure of making you a visit ; but I 
have no expectation of being able, during the present 
season, of going so far from home. In the mean while 
let me unite with all your other friends, in recommend, 
ing great attention, and that you do not, by any undue 
exertion of mind or body, weaken or injure what yet 



PASTOR AST) PROFESSOR IN NEW-YOBK. 231 



remains of health. The Lord pitieth them that fear 
him, for he knoweth our frame* He remembereth that 
we are dust. Accept of my wishes and prayers, that 
the Lord may strengthen and continue you still a bless- 
ing to his Church ; that he may comfort you with his 
presence, and give you great peace and joy in believ- 
ing ; and believe me to be, with sincere respect, 
" Eeverend and Dear Sir, 

" Your affectionate friend 

" And brother in the Lord, 

" J. H. LlVIXGSTON. 

"Rev. Dr Romeyk." 

The other, being short, is presented entire : 

" New-York, May 31, 1803. 

" Keverexd jcsB Dear Sir : Frequently since your 
kind and very acceptable letter came to hand, I have 
determined to write to you. But whether ordinary 
duties require more attention than heretofore, and press 
with greater weight, or whether a languor in the least 
exertion marks our advancing years, so it is, that 
between duties and languor I neglect what was once my 
delight, and I have not done what I intended to perform 
in this instance. 

"I wish very much to see you, and hope you will 
find yourself able to be present with us at the approach- 
ing session of the General Synod. We reside at so 
great a distance apart, that unless we meet upon such 
occasions, we have little hope of enjoying each other's 
company. The subjects you mentioned in your friend- 
ly letter, are very important. They are worthy of our 



232 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



maturest consideration and joint efforts ; and I stall be 
happy to unite with you in promoting the peace and 
prosperity of our precious Zion. 

u Endeavor, my dear brother, to meet me at Pough- 
keepsie. Summon up the energy requisite to under- 
take the journey. The exertion may be of service even 
to the languid body ; and it will, no doubt, refresh your 
mind. The Lord strengthen and comfort you, preserve 
you on the way, and render our interview pleasant to 
ourselves, and profitable to his Church ! Accept of 
my sincere love ; and be assured of the respect and 
esteem with which I am, 
11 Eeverend Sir, 

" Your affectionate friend 

" And brother in the Lord, 

" J. H. Livingston. 

"Eev. Dr. Eomeyn. 

The next extract is from his letter to the Eev. Mr. 
(afterwards Doctor) J. B. Eomeyn, upon learning the 
decease of this gentleman's father : 

New- York, April 26, 1804. 
4 Eev. and Yery Dear Sir : Yesterday evening 
your favor came to hand, which announced the depart- 
ure of your worthy and venerable parent, whom I have 
been happy to call my friend and brother in the min- 
istry, for many years. Nearly of the same age, we 
commenced our labors almost at the same time, and 
have obtained grace to continue longer in the service 
of our blessed Master than many others. I went to 
see him last summer, and was greatly affected to find 



PASTOR AND PROFESSOR EST NEW-YORK. 233 



him so much, debilitated ; and from the usual progress 
of paralytic symptoms, did not expect he would ever 
recover his former strength. I see from the account 
you give, that he has very gradually declined, and his 
latter end has been peace. He gently fell asleep, com- 
mitting his spirit into the hand of his Divine Eedeemer. 
Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord. This proves 
a source of precious consolation, my dear young friend, 
to you, while it suggests a powerful argument to follow 
those who, through faith and patience, inherit the 
promise. You can not, indeed, mourn as those who 
have no hope. Adoration and praise unite with grief 
and resignation; and even this event is within the 
promise, which engages that all things shall work to- 
gether for good for them that love God. The Lord 
sanctify this new trial, this serious bereavement to you ! 
Your heavenly Father still lives ; your precious Jesus, 
your best Friend, has engaged to guide you by his 
counsel, and afterwards receive you to glory. Let this 
be your consolation. Let this encourage you to live 
by faith, to walk with God, and be wholly devoted to 
his service. * * * * 

"Your very affectionate 

"J. H. Livingston." 

It was said that the plan of the professorate was again 
altered. The General Synod, at their session in this 
year, viewing the appointment which had been made 
of two additional professors in 1797, as a temporary 
expedient designed to meet certain circumstances which 
then existed, passed this resolution: "That the Ee- 
formed Dutch churches will unite their efforts to pro- 



234 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



mote the establishment of only one professor in the- 
ology, and will employ vigorous measures to raise a 
fund for the same ; provided, however, that the pro- 
fessors appointed by the General Synod of 1797 con- 
tinue in their offices, and enjoy all the honors and 
emoluments thereof, equally with one professor con- 
templated to be established by this resolution, during 
their natural lives, or as long as they behave well, 
and are capable of discharging the duties of their 
offices. But in either, or in any of these cases, which 
would vacate their offices, no successor shall be ap- 
pointed." 

Dr. Livingston was now duly chosen the permanent 
professor, whose temporary seat should be in the city 
of New- York, "subject, however, at all times, to the 
government of Synod, with respect to a more eligible 
or expedient place for this purpose," and a committee 
was appointed to devise ways and means to raise a fund 
for his support. At the same time, the Eev. John 
Basset and the Rev. Jeremiah Romeyn were appointed 
professors of the Hebrew language. This act of Synod, 
which made all the honorable amends then in their 
power, for any real or supposed injury he had sustained 
under the other act, though it produced no immediate 
results of consequence, ultimately led to a separation 
from his pastoral charge and to his permanent removal 
from the city. 

The health of the eloquent and eminent Linn had 
now become so enfeebled as to induce him to solicit a 
dissolution of his connection with the congregation, 
as he stated in the following letter to his colleague, 
dated January 29, 1805 : 



PASTOR AND PROFESSOR IN NEW-YORK. 235 



" My Dear Colleague : I can not think of taking 
a measure extremely interesting to me, without your 
advice and assistance. The inclemency of the weather, 
together with my indisposition, prevent me from wait- 
ing upon you. I have not been out of the house for 
more than a week ; during which time, my health and 
spirits have greatly declined. I am now fully per- 
suaded, after repeated struggles, that I am not able to 
perform the duties which the congregation expect from 
me, and have determined to propose to the Consistory 
to retire upon such conditions as shall be mutually 
deemed just and honorable. I mean to propose none 
in the first instance ; but to go to the country, having 
no pastoral charge, and preaching occasionally, never 
relinquishing, while any strength remains, the sacred 
office to which I have been dedicated. 

"You will easily conceive my embarrassing situa- 
tion, with a young and numerous family ; and will 
feel that tenderness which our holy religion inspires, 
especially after serving together for above eighteen 
years in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I writ6 with 
pain. I have delayed this business, though often re- 
volved in my mind. Yery lately has my determina- 
tion been taken, and this is the reason why it has not 
been sooner communicated to you. The Consistory 
meet on Thursday next, and on the Thursday follow- 
ing. If any thing be done, it can not be delayed, on 
account of necessary arrangements. To the will of 
God I hope ever to be resigned. The Divine Master 
who has employed me, and been gracious to me, will pro- 
vide for me. May you enjoy much of his comfortable 



236 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



presence, and richly share in the blessings of the ever- 
lasting covenant. Pray for me. 

" I am, my dear colleague, with the highest respect 
and affection, your friend and brother, 

" William Linn." 

Dr. Livingston laid the proposition of his friend be- 
fore the Consistory, who acted upon the occasion with 
their wonted liberality ; and as soon as the spring 
opened, Dr. Linn removed his family to Albany, where 
he spent the remainder of his life. 

Dr. Linn commenced his ministry as a chaplain in 
the continental army during the war, and was after- 
wards settled over a Presbyterian church in Elizabeth, 
N. J. He was a divine of great celebrity. His preach- 
ing was uniformly judicious, evangelical, and impress- 
ive ; but upon particular occasions, his performances 
were master-pieces of the kind. The interest he took 
in the party politics of the day, somewhat impaired his 
popularity towards the close of his ministry, but he 
still had many warm and excellent friends in the con- 
gregation. "When he died, the late Dr. J. B. Eomeyn, 
then a minister in Albany, wrote to Dr. Livingston, to 
inform him of the event, and the receipt of his letter 
was thus acknowledged : 

" New- York, January 13, 1808. 
" Eeverend and Dear Sir : This moment your 
friendly communication is handed to me, and I sit 
down immediately to thank you for your kind atten- 
tion. The near connection which has for many years 
subsisted between Dr. Linn and myself, and the sincere 



PASTOR AND PROFESSOR IN NEW- YORK. 237 



love I cherished for him, from the first day of our ac 
quaintance, render the event you have announced very 
affecting. Your remarks respecting ministers of the 
Grospel are just and pious. If such improvements ap- 
ply to others in younger life, how much more must I 
feel their force who am several years older than our 
deceased friend ! Wlien your worthy father departed, 
I felt myself deprived of the dear companions of my 
youth. Now, in regard to them, I stand alone. I 
mark the signal, hear the warning voice, and look unto 
Jesus. 

" This is, as you observe, an afflicting providence on 
many accounts, and can not fail of being especially so 
to his bereaved, distressed family. 

"With assurances of my respect and love, 
"Dear Sir, your most affectionate, 

u J. H. Livingston. 

" Eev. Mr. Romeyn." 

The resignation of Dr. Linn, which took place in the 
spring of the year 1805, increased, of course, propor- 
tionally, the parochial labors of the Doctor, In some 
respects, these labors were lighter, probably, than those 
of his two younger estimable colleagues ; but they were, 
nevertheless, sufficiently multiplied and difficult of ac- 
complishment for one of his years and constitutional 
debility ; and, in referring to his services at this period, 
those ought at least to be cursorily noticed which were 
extra-parochial, for they were not few in number. He 
frequently preached iia neighboring Dutch churches; 
and upon particular occasions, as the laying of the 
corner-stone of a new church, or the opening of a 



288 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 

new church for public worship, it was in a manner 
considered his prerogative to officiate. For a series 
of years, when either the one or the other was to be 
done in any part of the city, or in any place at a 
moderate distance from it, he was requested, in defer- 
ence to his prominence and seniority in the ministr}^ 
to perform the service. And it may be questioned, 
whether any contemporary clergyman in the United 
States, except a diocesan, had the honor of laying 
more corner-stones of churches, or of opening a greater 
number of buildings erected for the public worship of 
God, than Doctor Livingston. Within the period em- 
braced in this chapter, it is believed that he discharged 
one or both of these offices in Flatbush and Brooklyn, 
Long-Island; in Belleville and * * * P New- 
Jersey ; in Greenwich and Bloomingdale ; when the 
first churches were erected in these places ; in Garden 
street, at the erection of the new building upon the 
site of the old one ; in Franklin street and Broome 
street, in the city of New- York. It may be added 
that he, being the sole pastor at the time, without doubt 
opened the North Church, when it was repaired after 
the war. He also opened the Middle Dutch Church, 
when that building was put in a state to be used for 
public worship, and the sermon he preached upon this 
occasion was afterwards published. 

The Doctor was by no means an indifferent observer 
of the events in the world, which, at that day, attracted 
the notice of all intelligent Christians. He saw dis- 
tinctly the commencement of a new and glorious epoch 
in the history of the Church ; and he took a deep inter- 
est in the benevolent and pious efforts which then be- 



PASTOR AND PROFESSOR IN NEW- YORK. 289 



gan to be made in New- York, as well as in most other 
parts of Protestant Christendom, to extend the king- 
dom of the Redeemer, 

Before the New- York Missionary Society, he 
preached at the annual meeting, April 23, 1799, a 
sermon entitled, "The Glory of the Eedeemer," on 
Colossians 3 : 11, " Christ is all and in all;" and also, at 
the annual meeting, April 3, 1804, on the text, Kev. 
14 : 6, 7, 11 And I saw another angel fly in the midst of 
heaven" etc. Both of these discourses were published. 
One of them was reprinted in New-England, and had 
no small influence in exciting that devoted missionary 
spirit which a few years later led to the formation of 
the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Mis- 
sions. One of the first four missionaries of that Board, 
the beloved Gordon Hall, speaking of this sermon in a 
letter to a friend, remarked that it was " enough to 
melt an heart of adamant." 

In 1807, the trustees of Queen's College, having re- 
solved to revive the institution under their care, made 
a communication to that effect to the General Synod of 
the Reformed Dutch Church, and solicited their appro- 
bation of the measure. The Synod cordially approved 
of what had been done, in relation to the same commu- 
nication, by the Particular Synod of New- York, to which 
body it had previously been made, and appointed a 
committee to confer with the committee of the trustees, 
who were then present, upon the subject. The result 
of the conference was, the formation of a covenant between 
the Synod and the trustees, for the union of the pro- 
fessorate with the college, the fourth and fifth articles 
of which were in these words : 



240 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



" The Trustees of Queen's College shall call no pro- 
fessor of theology but such as shall be nominated and 
chosen by the General Synod, agreeably to the resolu- 
tions and arrangements formed in General Synod in 
1804, respecting the permanent professorship, which is 
hereby located at New-Brunswick." 

" As soon as the Trustees shall have obtained a fund, 
the interest of which will yield a competent support to 
the theological professor, of which competency, when- 
ever any difficulties or doubts may arise, the contracting 
parties shall judge and determine, the trustees shall be 
bound, without delay, to call the professor appointed 
by the Synod ; and the Synod shall, and hereby do, 
request their professor, as soon as he shall have received 
such a call, to make arrangements forthwith for enter- 
ing upon the duties of his office." 

An interesting and able address upon the subject of 
the theological professorate was now drawn up, pub- 
lished, and widely circulated ; and, under the divine 
blessing, it excited, in many parts of the Church, great 
zeal and liberality in behalf of the important object 
contemplated. In the city of New- York alone, sub- 
scriptions to the professoral fund, to the amount of more 
than ten thousand dollars, were obtained in a few days ; 
and encouraged by this auspicious beginning, the trus- 
tees forthwith called the Doctor to the professorship of 
theology, tendering him therein, as the yearly compen- 
sation for his services, the sum of seven hundred and 
fifty dollars. They also called him to the presidency of 
the college, in which the salary offered was two hundred 
and fifty dollars per annum. 



PASTOR AND PROFESSOR IN NEW- YORK. 241 



The first call lie accepted ; but fearing that if he im 
mediately removed, the efforts of the churches to pro 
vide an adequate fund for the support of the professorate 
would abate, he concluded to remain for the present 
where he was. 

About this time, he experienced an increase of infirm- 
ities, which was quite alarming. His mind, as well as 
his body, in a measure failed him, and he was sensible that 
he was not able to discharge, as he formerly had done, his 
customary ministerial duties. The decline of his health 
became, indeed, so visible, that the Consistory of the 
Church considered it their duty to excuse him from a 
part of his regular ministrations ; and they accordingly 
passed the following resolution, a copy of which they 
directed to be delivered to him : 

" In Consistory, 20th July, 1809. 

u The Consistory taking into consideration the long 
and faithful services of the Eev. Doctor Livingston, 
their senior minister, and also considering his age, the 
ill state of his health, and his consequent inability to 
preach more than once on the Sabbath, therefore re- 
solved unanimously, that this Consistory are willing to 
dispense with the afternoon public services of the 
Reverend Doctor Livingston, on the Sabbath, and that 
he preach every Sabbath morning only, unless he feels 
able and disposed to perform more service. Ordered, 
that the Eev. Mr. Kuypers, the President, be requested 
to deliver a copy of this resolution to the Eev. Doctor 
Livingston. 

" Extract from the Minutes. 

" Isaac L. Kip, Sec." 

11 



242 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



As the Doctor was now exempted from a portion of 
his usual labors, and Iris removal to New-Brunswick 
was expected to take place at a day not far distant, the 
Consistory deemed it expedient to obtain, as speedily as 
possible, a more ample supply of ministerial service. 
They soon after, therefore, invited the Rev. John 
Schureman, of Millstone, N. J., and the Eev. Jacob 
Brodhead, of Ehinebeck, N, Y., (see Appendix H,) to 
come and serve them in the Gospel. These gentlemen 
accepted their calls, and were installed collegiate pastors 
with Dr. Livingston, Dr. Kuypers, and Dr. Abeel, in 
the autumn of this year. 



PROFESSOR AT NEW-BRUKSWIGK. 243 



CHAPTEE IX. 

FROM HIS REMOVAL TO NEW-BRUNSWICK UNTIL HIS 
DEATH AND BURIAL. 

" There is something singularly affecting" says Dr. 
Hanter, speaking of Abraham's departure, at the 
seventy-fifth year of his age, from his country and kin- 
dred, and father's house, to go unto a land which God 
had promised to show him, " in the idea of an old man 
giving up the scenes of his youthful days — scenes en- 
deared to the mind by the fond recollection of past joys ; 
foregoing his kindred and friends, and becoming an 
exile and a wanderer, at a period when nature seeks 
repose, and when the heart cleaves to those objects to 
which it has been long accustomed." 

Doctor Livingston had almost reached three score 
and ten years, when he concluded to resign his charge 
and remove to New-Brunswick ; and so painful was the 
change to him, at that advanced period of life, that he 
remarked to the writer, a few days before he left the 
city : " I feel it, my son, to be a species of martyrdom." 
Such a representation of a removal into a refined and 
pious society, at fifty miles distance, looks like doting 
extravagance. But his feelings will be understood and 



244 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



justified by all who consider the sacrifice lie made in 
breaking up all his old attachments, and parting from 
a proverbially considerate and affectionate people, 
among whom he had labored for forty years, and upon 
whose love and honor he could securely count even to 
the last. That he was willing to make this separation 
in obedience to the voice of the Church, and out of re- 
gard to her good, shows the extent of his pious zeal 
and disinterestedness. 

In February, 1810, the trustees of Queen's College 
having obtained more subscriptions to the professoral 
fund, passed a resolution to increase the sum which 
they had previously offered, by the addition of six hun- 
dred and fifty dollars, making the salary now tendered 
him, as professor, fourteen hundred dollars. A copy 
of this resolution was sent to him without delay, ac- 
companied with another call to the presidency of the 
college ; and in March, he wrote to the trustees, " that 
notwithstanding the interest arising from the principal 
in their hands, was not yet sufficient to produce a com- 
petent and honorable salary, yet the importance of 
the institution, and the necessity of organizing it with- 
out delay, were so impressive, that he would not hesi- 
tate to comply with the calls of the churches, being 
fully persuaded that when he made such large and 
painful sacrifices for the public, he would most assur- 
edly not be neglected or forsaken by them." 

Shortly after, he communicated to the Consistory of 
the Church the reasons which had induced his deter- 
mination to remove, in the following letter : " The 
united voice of all the churches fixed the professorship 
at Brunswick, with a request, and even peremptory re- 



PROFESSOR AT NEW-BRUNSWICK. 



245 



solution, that their professor should remove to that 
place, as soon as the funds to be raised should prove com- 
petent to his support. A generous zeal was immediately 
shown by many individual members of the churches, 
in subscribing liberally for that purpose ; and had it 
not been for our national distresses, which at that cri- 
tical moment rendered it improper to proceed with the 
subscriptions, there is no doubt a sufficiency would 
have been soon obtained. Two years have elapsed, 
and the object is not yet accomplished. It is acknow- 
ledged that the funds collected are not adequate to the 
honorable support of the professor ; that they do not 
correspond with the wishes and character of the churches ; 
and are, as yet, vastly inferior to any other public es- 
tablishment; but it is suggested, and probably with 
great truth, that all further application for an increase 
of the funds, and even for obtaining a great part of 
what is already subscribed, depend upon the immediate 
removal of the professor to Brunswick. After wait- 
ing so long, despondency has arisen, and fears are in- 
dulged that, notwithstanding all the exertions that have 
been made, the whole institution, if he refuses, will at 
last fail, or be again broken into separate interests. 
Hence the requests are pressing, the demands increase, 
and the public voice becomes clamorous." 

" The professor has labored twenty-six years without 
any compensation ; and he may now be justified in the 
expectation of having his situation at last rendered 
comfortable and equitable. He can not, therefore, it 
may be supposed, reconcile it with prudence or justice 
to himself, to engage in new and precarious dependen- 
cies, and expose himself to losses and troubles, which 



246 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



the public have no right to expect or demand from an 
individual. But these remonstrances must yield to the 
authoritative directions of Divine Providence ; and cor- 
rect views of the important crisis in which the interests 
of our churches are brought, seem to suppress all personal 
considerations, silence all minor objections, and impe- 
riously require an immediate sacrifice. I judged it 
proper to draw these outlines of our history, that 
you might at one glance have the whole subject before 
you." 

4 'And now, my dear brethren, what conclusion do 
you draw? I make no appeal to the feelings which 
your affections dictate. I know your love — a love 
that has been ripening, without any interruption, nearly 
half a century ; a love which, if consulting its own 
claims, would never consent to a separation while life 
remains. But I appeal to your judgments ; I appeal 
to your zeal for the highest interests of Zion, to your 
attachment to the Reformed Dutch Church in our 
land, and to the obligation we are under to assist in 
promoting a cause to which consequences of such im- 
mense magnitude are evidently attached. I introduce 
this appeal to prepare your minds for the communica- 
tion I am now compelled to make." 

" My dear brethren, after many struggles and great 
reluctance, I am at length conquered. I am persuaded 
to yield to the direction and call of the churches repre- 
sented in General Synod, who has a right to command 
the services of her members and officers ; and I believe, 
therefore, that it is the will of our Lord and Master, 
who speaks by his Church, that I should remove to 
New-Brunswick, and there devote the short remnant 



PEOFESSOR AT KEW-BBUXSWICK. 247 



of my days to the direct duties and objects of the theo- 
logical professorship, and without delay I let you know 
the result. Let it not offend any zealous believer to 
hear a Christian speak of struggles and reluctance, since 
self-denial and cheerful acquiescence ought always to 
be forward and predominate. It is so ; yet the infirm- 
ities of human nature claim some indulgence, as far as 
they may be considered to be free from sin. It is not 
always an easy task to ascertain the will of the Lord, 
with respect to providential events, especially when a 
train of difficulties has long continued to interrupt the 
accomplishment of any great object. The immediate 
welfare of our congregation was always uppermost upon 
my heart, and I could never feel a freedom to leave it, 
while my presence was judged necessary to its peace 
and prosperity. But, after a deliberate and disinter- 
ested view of existing facts, that critical state appears 
to be now essentially changed. The Lord has blessed 
us with sufficient and acceptable help ; and, if it may 
please him to hear the fervent prayers of his people, 
we may indulge the hope that our beloved minister, 
who has for some time been much indisposed, may 
again have his precious health restored, and be able, at 
least in some measure, to edify the Church with his 
labors, his counsel, and experience." [The " beloved 
minister'' here referred to was the Eev. Dr. John N. 
Abeel, who was at the time, as but too soon after became 
evident to all his friends, consumptively diseased. He 
lingered about two years, and then finished his earthly 
course.] 

" "When to this state of things I add the full discovery 
that my advanced years have rendered it impossible for 



248 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



me to fulfill, as I ought and wish, any longer the duties 
of the ministry, the objection, which of all others has 
always been the highest, and indeed the only one, is 
quite removed, and I am compelled to conclude that it 
has now become my duty, without longer delay, cheer- 
fully and thankfully to apply to the sole and imme- 
diate labors of the professorate ; for which, considering 
previous preparations and long habits, I may humbly 
hope, with the divine aid, a competent degree of vigor 
and strength may yet remain." 

To this communication the Consistory returned an 
answer by the hands of three of their respected mem- 
bers, expressive of the affection they felt for their vener- 
able pastor, and of their regret at parting with him. 
Portions of this answer are here given : 

"Keverend and Very Dear Father and Bro- 
ther in the Lord : The Consistory of the Eeformed 
Dutch Church in this city, which has so long enjoyed the 
blessing of your ministry, has, with deep and unfeigned 
regret, received the tidings of your intention soon to 
transfer your labors to another quarter of the Lord's 
vineyard ; though they rejoice to find you are to be 
employed, during the remnant of your days, in the 
honorable and necessary duties of the theological pro- 
fessorate." 

w While they can not but approve the measures taken 
by the Eeverend Synod, for providing an efficient and 
learned ministry, to supply the wants of the churches 
under their care ; while they adore the goodness of the 
Lord, in thus far prospering their endeavors, and admire 
the disinterestedness and steady perseverance displayed 



PROFESSOR AT NEW-BRUNSWICK. 249 



throughout the whole of your conduct in the promotion 
of this laudable work, they can not be unaffected by 
the loss they must sustain by your departure : they feel, 
they deeply feel, the expected separation ; a separation 
that tears asunder the finest, the tenderest cords that 
bind the heart." 

"Many, Reverend Sir, still look up to you as their 
spiritual father ; and all revere you as under Christ 
their solace in distress and in difficulties — their support 
in the hour of trial ; and the endeared tie, that has so 
long preserved in harmony the various and sometimes 
conflicting interests and passions that necessarily arise 
in an extensive congregation, composed of so many dis- 
tinct members, of different ages, characters, and circum- 
stances, and influenced by views and motives often irre- 
concilable — sometimes opposite. A gracious Lord has 
mercifully continued your labors among this people for 
forty years. They have been blessed in the conversion 
of sinners, and edification of the saints. You have been 
the instrument of peace, and the healer of breaches in 
the Church. * * * * The prospect of your future 
usefulness to the Church of God, in an employment 
which requires the full exercise of distinguished and 
matured talents, without great exertions of bodily 
powers, in some measure satisfies and consoles the 
mind, though it contributes little to the abatement of 
grief. * * * * We commit you, and your amia- 
ble consort, to the superintending care and gracious pro- 
tection of a God infinite in mercy and love. 

X X * * ■£ * 

" With sentiments of unfeigned respect, ardent affec- 
tion, and unabated zeal for your happiness here and 
11* 



250 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



hereafter, we subscribe ourselves your sincere friends, 
brothers, and children in the Lord. 

u Signed by order and on behalf of the Consistory, 

"Jacob Brodhead, 

"Pres. pro tern. 

" New-York, 25th June, 1810." 

But while occupied with the cares and anxieties 
attendant upon his removal from New- York, Dr. Liv- 
ingston found time to secure, by personal solicitation, a 
most important educational foundation for the school of 
the prophets. The Eev. Elias Yan Bunschooten, 
of Minisink, a life-long friend and brother in the minis- 
try, was understood to be in the possession of large 
wealth, and was now in advanced years, without any 
children. To him the following letter was addressed, 
which we copy from a very able article in the New- 
Brunswick Eeview for February, 1854. (See Ap- 
pendix I.) 

" New- York, July 31, 1810. 

"Keverend and Dear Sir: Spared to a period of 
life, which few who commenced with us have attained, 
it surely becomes us with adoring gratitude to praise 
God, who has upheld and blessed us thus far, and 
exclaim with joy and thankful hearts, Why do we 
yet live, while others are taken away ? What shall 
we render to the Lord for all his benefits towards us ? 
Much is due from us ; and if, in our closing scenes, we 
may be privileged to promote the Kedeemer's interest, 
we shall not have lived thus long in vain, nor will our 
memory be forgotten in silence, 

" You and I set out in public service nearly at the 



PE0FESS0E AT KEW-BRUKSWICK. 



251 



same time. We both, I trust, were taught in our 
youth, through grace, to love the blessed Jesus, and to 
be zealous for his Church and cause. Grod was pleased 
to bestow talents and opportunities agreeably to his 
sovereign pleasure ; and he has enabled us to improve 
them, in some measure, with sincerity and faithfulness. 
Feeble, indeed, have been our efforts, and small our 
success, compared with what others have done ; yet, 
with all our imperfections, we have cause to praise 
him, and can humbly say, 1 His grace which was 
bestowed upon us, was not altogether in vain.' Ad- 
vanced now in -years, this retrospect is full of consola- 
tion ; yet even in advanced years, while life remains, 
let us not despair of doing something still that may re- 
dound to the benefit of the Church, and endear our 
names to the children of God. I bless the Lord, who 
can make the last fruits to be the ripest and the best, 
for keeping the flame of love and zeal yet burning in 
my bosom, and raising my ardent hopes, that a declin- 
ing lamp may still shine to some advantage. Feeling my 
strength fail for the usual labors of the ministry, I have 
resigned that work to follow the call of my Master in 
another department. I have, therefore, concluded to 
leave a station in which I have been upheld and made 
to persevere for forty years; and am now making 
preparations to remove shortly to New-Brunswick, 
there to devote the short remnant of my days to the 
immediate work of the professorate, agreeably to the 
wishes and resolutions of all our churches. I commu- 
nicate this to you without reserve, as I know your love 
to the Eeformed Church and your love to me will 
render the communication acceptable. You and I are 



252 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 

standing at a conspicuous point of the wall of Zion, 
almost alone. Of all those who were in the ministry 
before the Kevolutionary War very few are left. Only 
three, whom I recollect, besides ourselves, remain, and 
they are feeble and superannuated. To you and my- 
self our younger brethren look for counsel, example, 
and assistance. If the Lord shall please to sanctify and 
quicken our hearts, we may yet, in our old days, do 
something that shall make glad the city of our God. I 
have told you the prospects and labors which are before 
me. To advance these I must make a great sacrifice, 
not only of former habits, affections, and a most com- 
fortable situation, but of great expenses and risks. You 
know the funds collected are not yet sufficient to sup- 
port the establishment. Yet the wants of the churches 
are so great and alarming that they cannot wait longer ; 
and I cheerfully make the sacrifice, and leave the issue 
with the Lord. I shall be happy if it may be in your 
heart to assist in this vast design, that we may mutually 
strengthen and encourage each other ; and that our 
younger brethren and all the churches may see and 
rejoice that their two old ministers love the Lord and 
devote themselves and all they have to his service. 
The churches expect much from me, and they have 
the same claim upon you, my brother — they expect 
also much from you. If grace be bestowed I trust they 
will not be disappointed in either of us. I know you 
will rejoice to join with me in this blessed work. We 
began together ; let us end together with the same zeal 
and laudable efforts. 

" I have considered in what way it will be possible for 
you to afford signal assistance. Your years and your 



PBOFESSOE AT NEW-BRUNSWICK. 



253 



situation forbid any active part in rearing the temple 
we are about to dedicate to Jesus ; but the Lord has 
not left you without means of being greatly benefi- 
cial. You are blessed with much wealth and large 
property. What, my dear old friend and brother — 
what if God should put it in your heart to dispose, in 
your last will and testament, of a respectable part ot 
that property for the benefit of the Theological Institu- 
tion ? By inserting it in your will, you will not be 
troubled with any arrangements during your life. The 
whole will remain, as heretofore, in your possession. 
When you depart it must go to others, and you have 
the right of directing to whom and for what purpose 
it shall go. If the claims of relatives who expect to 
share the whole were always to be regarded, there would 
never be any generous donations for public services. 
But, in the present case, it is a consolation that rela- 
tives have a copious resource, and will be richly pro- 
vided for. It will be no injury to any if you should 
make the Beformed Dutch Church your principal heir. 
The very idea must be pleasing to your mind, and will 
warm your heart. It will prove how much you loved 
that Church which has so long loved and respected 
you. I have suggested this with freedom, and without 
reserve. My heart will rejoice if the rising generation 
shall acknowledge that their old ministers show, by 
generous deeds, that they possess the faith which works 
by love. 

" There are three great objects attached to our institu- 
tion, neither of which have funds provided for their 
accomplishment. One is the support of poor students 
in theology. Many who are pious and wish to study 



254 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



are not able to sustain the expense. We must provide 
some assistance for them. It is a fact, that several 
worthy persons have left ample legacies, by their last 
wills, to the college at Princeton, for the express 
purpose of supporting or helping poor students in 
theology. And surely we may hope that in our Dutch 
Reformed Church there are men as good, and as able, 
and as willing, as any in the other Churches. Another 
object is, the purchase of a library for the use of the 
students in theology. The third is, a fund whose in- 
terest shall be applied for the immediate support of the 
professorship itself, and maintaining such assistants as 
will soon be wanted. Either of these objects singly is 
important ; and all of them together must receive aid, 
or our most strenuous efforts will prove for a long time, 
if not for ever, unavailing. 

Select for yourself either of these objects, agreeably 
to your own choice, or unite the whole in one common 
benefit, referring it to the General Synod to apply it at 
their discretion. Think upon this subject, my dear sir, 
with that seriousness it deserves ; and if you find your- 
self, through grace, disposed to leave any thing for this 
purpose, let it be inserted in your will without delay, 
for our lives are precarious. As the words or terms 
used in last wills and testaments ought to be very 
clear and definite, suffer me to mention that the legacy 
ought to be made to some body corporate, in trust 
for the uses intended, and none is so proper as Queen's 
College. The style or name of the college, by which 
it can receive or hold property, is The Trustees of 
Queen's College in New- Jersey. To them let the device 
be made; expressly, however, and clearly declaring 



PROFESSOR AT NEW-BBUNSW ICK. 255 

the precise trust or object you intend. Let the trustees 
be compelled, by your will, to vest the legacy in some 
safe fund, and apply the interest thereof yearly, for the 
very purpose you may please to direct, and for no other. 
That direction, if you choose, may be placed under the 
control of the General Synod of the Eeformed Dutch 
Church for the time being, for ever. 

Excuse, my dear old friend, the freedom with which 
I have communicated these sentiments. My intentions 
are sincere, upright, affectionate, and zealous. I trust 
you will be happy to join with me in doing something 
for which the churches will remember us with grati- 
tude. While I make sacrifices, and work besides, you 
will cheerfully embalm your memory by leaving some- 
thing important to promote the same cause. Please to 
send a line in answer, and let me know that you have 
received this letter, and that you love me more than 
ever for what I have now suggested. The Lord pre- 
serve, sanctify, and comfort you, and incline your heart 
to do more than others in assisting his poor Church. 
Be assured of my affectionate attachment, and the great 
respect with which I am, reverend and dear sir, 
<; Your faithful friend and brother in the Lord, 

" J. H. Livingston. 

"Bey. Me. E. Van Bunschooten." 

Every one, we think, must be charmed with the tone 
and spirit of this epistle, and the beautiful confidence it 
indicates as existing between those venerable saints. It 
does not appear what further correspondence took 
place ; but Dr. Livingston did not mistake his man, 
except that the latter did not wait for his own decease, 



256 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



but became mostly bis own executor, by adjusting tbe 
business before his death. We know that he visited 
Dr. Livingston repeatedly at New-Brunswick for the 
purpose of settling the matter to his satisfaction. As 
the result of their conferences, Mr. Van Bunschooten 
in the year 1814 endowed the trustees of Queen's (now 
Eutgers) College with the sum of fourteen thousand six 
hundred and forty dollars, which was afterwards in- 
creased, by a bequest in his will, to seventeen thousand 
dollars. The income of this fund is to be applied to 
the support and education " of pious youth who hope 
they have a call of God to preach the Gospel of Jesus 
Christ.'' None can be admitted to this benefit but such 
as are recommended by General Synod. If the income 
should exceed what may be wanted for that purpose, 
the trustees, with the advice and consent of General 
Synod, may apply the overplus to such other purposes 
as shall most tend to the good of the institution and 
the benefit of literature. The fund, at present, some- 
what exceeds the sum of twenty thousand dollars. 

On the tenth of October following, the Doctor re- 
moved to New-Brunswick ; and his arrival there was 
greeted as an event of most favorable augury, insuring 
success to the whole plan that had been formed in re- 
lation to the college and the professorate, the ]ong 
wished for union between which was now completed. 
Soon after his arrival, he wrote a few lines to his friend, 
Isaac L. Kip, Esq., of New- York, which begin thus: 
" Many cares and arrangements, inseparable from a 
new habitation, have engrossed my attention since I 
came to this place, and prevented me from dropping a 
line to you. The new part of my dwelling is yet un- 



PROFESSOE AT NEW-BBUNSWICK. 



257 



der the hands of the carpenters, and the old requires 
much alteration and amendments, to render it comfort- 
able for the approaching winter. But, in the midst of 
all these, I am kept through grace, in some measure, 
near the Lord, and live by faith. I have made sacri- 
fices to promote his cause, and he hath said, he will 
not leave nor forsake me. Upon his word of truth I 
confidently rely, and desire to feel reconciled to the 
cross of Christ. His grace will be sufficient, for he is 
the Lord my righteousness, my strength, my help and 
shield. Amidst all my cares, and in the multitude of 
my thoughts, I still remember, most affectionately, the 
whole flock and my faithful friends. My prayers are 
for them, and I am confident they can not forget 
to remember me and mine continually before the 
throne/' 

In order to provide a suitable residence for his fami- 
ly, the Doctor had to involve himself in a debt, which 
for a time caused him considerable disquietude. He 
was under the necessity of purchasing the place that 
was now undergoing repairs and alterations, to put it 
in a comfortable state ; and, to pay for it, he had de- 
pended upon the sale of some property he had in Xew- 
York. More than a year elapsed, however, before he 
could effect a satisfactory sale of this property, and 
meanwhile, his situation, on account of his debt and 
the prospect of an insufficient support, was an anxious 
and very unpleasant one, as will appear by an extract 
from another letter to the same individual : " I said the 
sale of my place would be considered as a merciful pro- 
vidence, because I wish much to dispose of that pro- 



258 memoir of john henry Livingston. 



perty. I wish, it, because I have made a purchase 
here, for the discharge of which I depended wholly 
upon the sale of my place there. I was convinced, and 
I still am, that it was my duty to come here. Events 
of the highest magnitude to the prosperity of our 
churches, appeared to depend upon my coming. It 
was high time for me to decide and to remove. My 
refusal or delay might have rendered all abortive. I 
found there was no habitation for me to be obtained 
here, excepting that which I purchased. I knew also 
the public funds for my support, after I was here, were 
not yet ascertained. Notwithstanding all this, which 
to the eye of prudence was forbidding, I yet ventured, 
as I trust, in the obedience of faith, and risked all the 
consequences to promote this work of the Lord. You 
will easily conceive now, that if, by the sale of my place, 
I might be able to discharge the burden that has ac- 
crued, and, especially, if something might remain for a 
support upon which I could depend, it would indeed 
be a merciful providence. While I work for the 
churches, I am willing to maintain myself, if I can. 
Zion is welcome to my labors. To Zion and to Zion's 
Lord, I cheerfully consecrate all I am and have. My 
other property is not immediately productive. * * * 
In this situation, while, for the trial of my faith and 
hope, no doubt, it pleases the Lord to disappoint me 
hitherto in the sale of my place, which is my only pre- 
sent resource, you can readily conceive that, at times, I 
feel as if I was left alone," In two years, the Doctor 
did not receive the whole amount of salary due him for 
one, $1200 being all that the funds in hand had pro- 
duced during that period ; so that his fears in relation 



PKOFESSOR AT NEW-BRUNSWICK. 259 



to a support were not altogether groundless, nor is his 
anxiety on that account to be wondered at. 

Queen's College being revived, agreeably to the re- 
solution of the trustees, under the auspices of the Eev. 
Dr. Condict, as its vice-president, at the commence- 
ment of the exercises of this institution, in the autumn 
of this year, the Doctor entered upon the discharge of 
his official duties, as president and professor of theolo- 
gy. But it ought to be observed, that in the capacity 
of president, it was not expected he would render much 
active service : no more was required of him, in fact, 
by his call to the office, than that he should " preside 
at commencements and authenticate diplomatic docu- 
ments, and take a general superintendence of the insti- 
tution, as far as his time and health might admit." 
Theology was the department to which he was chiefly 
to devote himself; this belonged exclusively to him, 
and he engaged in it with all his heart. 

At first, he had only five students to attend his lec- 
tures ; but the next year, the number increased to nine, 
and in 1812, when he made his first official communi- 
cation to General Synod, the committee who reported 
upon the subject of the professorate, made the follow- 
ing statement : " Since the removal of the professor, 
he has opened the theological school, and the number 
of students has so increased as to afford a hopeful pros- 
pect that this institution will be of extensive and per- 
manent usefulness to the Church." This statement is 
introduced by a reflection or two, expressed^, these 
words : " When your committee reflect on the zeal of 
the professor, thus to promote the best interests of the 
churches — his leaving a people endeared to him by a 



260 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



useful ministry of forty years — removing from a place 
where numerous connections had been formed, and an 
ample support was secured ; when they reflect on his 
entering on a new and arduous scene, at such sacrifices, 
in his advanced period of life ; the committee hesitate 
not to express the high and grateful sense they enter- 
tain of the conduct of the professor, and feel confident 
their sentiments are in unison with those of the 
churches generally." 

About this time his attention was called to the sub- 
iect of religious exercises at funerals. In the existing 
constitution of the Church, there was a rule that where 
" funeral sermons were not in use, they should not be 
introduced, and where they had already obtained? 
endeavors should be used to abolish them in the best 
manner possible." Besides, circumstances rendered it 
impracticable to have such discourses in large towns, 
where deaths occur often. Yet it was desirable that 
there should be a well-digested form of sound words, 
which being unexceptionable in style or matter, might 
be appropriately used on all such occasions. To meet 
this want, Dr. Livingston was induced to prepare, with 
some pains, a work entitled, u A Funeral Service ; or, 
Meditations adapted to Funeral Addresses." This little 
manual, which was compiled altogether from the Scrip- 
tures, was respectfully noticed by the General Synod ; 
but that body refused to limit ministers to any pre- 
scribed form. (See Minutes 1812, p. 34.) 

The same Synod, however, committed to him the 
performance of a task of great importance and respon- 
sibility. In the opinion of many pious and intelligent 
persons, the book of Psalms and Hymns then in use 



PROFESSOR AT NEW-BBUSTSWICK. 



261 



needed revision and enlargement ; and the subject 
having been referred to the Synod, they requested the 
Professor to make a selection, in accordance with the 
wishes of the churches, and appoint a committee to in- 
spect the same, when it should be completed. He cheer- 
fully yielded to the request, and soon after prepared a 
selection, which received the approbation of the com- 
mittee and the next Synod, and proved highly accept- 
able to the churches. 

The execution of this task cost him much labor, for 
he spared no pains to render the work as complete and 
satisfactory as possible ; and the resolution of the Sy- 
nod, which declared their sense of the service he had 
done, was a merited, and, no doubt, a gratifying return : 
"Resolved, that for the ability displayed in the revi- 
sion of psalms and hymns, in use in our churches, and 
for the labor and diligence with which that business 
has been finally accomplished, Professor Livingston is 
entitled to the gratitude and affectionate remembrance 
of the members of the Dutch Church, and all the friends 
of Zion ; and that this Synod entertain, and will con- 
tinue to entertain, a high sense of the faithful and af- 
fectionate labors of their aged brother for the advance- 
ment of the interests of our Church ; and that they 
will ever pray that when he shall be gathered to his 
fathers, he may join in the song of Moses and the 
Lamb." 

In compliance -with the wish of the Synod, he super- 
intended the first edition of the work ; and the follow- 
ing letter to his friend in New- York will show the so- 
licitude he felt to please in the discharge of this obliga- 
tion : 



262 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



" New-Brunswick, Nov. 13, 1813. 

" My Dear Sir: The Commercial Advertiser has rec- 
tified his error, agreeably to your application, and I 
thank you for your kind attention to my request, with- 
out which it would not have been effected. Our friend, 
George, has been with me ; and the whole arrangement 
is settled to his entire satisfaction. I hope it will 
prove beneficial to him, and I am confident he will 
make a correct edition. I am only afraid the printers 
will not employ as fine a paper as I wish. Paper 
is very dear, and is an article that enters deeply in 
their calculations ; but much of the respectability and 
beauty of the first edition, which ought to recommend 
itself to the public, not only by its intrinsic value, but 
its external neatness and splendor, will depend upon 

the paper on which it is printed. Mr. F has 

not showed me the paper he means to use, but has pro- 
mised that it shall be very white and good, and I de- 
pend upon his promise. 

" I am happy that the plan I recommended to the 
Synod, to assess each book at six cents, was adopted ; 
it is the surest and most productive to answer the be- 
nevolent purpose, to obtain which I am willing to be- 
stow my labor and toil. 

4 1 When I gave you the title-page, it occurred to me 
that an appropriate text from the Scriptures would be 
an excellent motto to dignify the page, and might 
serve a good purpose to admonish every individual 
who would certainly read it ; but the thought, or rather 
the thing, escaped me. If our committee have not al- 
ready published the copyright, I refer it to you and 
them, whether, under [the] name, where mottos are 



PROFESSOR AT NEW-BRUNSWICK. 268 



usually placed, it would not be eligible to add ; f Let 
tie word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, 
teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and 
hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your 
hearts unto the Lord.' (Coloss. 3 : 16.) If the publi- 
cation of the copyright be already made, it will be too 

late to make this addition. 

x # * * 

" Your faithful friend and servant, 

" J. H. Livingston. 

"I. L. Kip, Esq." 

In the course of the past year, the vice-president of 
the college, the pious, loved, and honored Condict, had 
been suddenly removed to another and better world ; 
a mournful dispensation, which bereaved the Church 
of New-Brunswick of an excellent pastor, and the 
college of an officer, under whose able and faithful 
superintendence it had already acquired considerable 
reputation. The death of this good man was soon fol- 
lowed by that of his son, a youth of great promise, who 
had been an instructor in the college ; and a few weeks 
after, another youth, a graduate of the institution, 
admired for his amiable disposition, ardent piety and 
brilliant talents, was laid in the grave. 

The Doctor was deeply affected by these events, well 
knowing the loss which the Church and the college 
had sustained: and, in closing his address at the 
Commencement of the same year, he took a short 
but pathetic notice of them, to enforce his sage and 
affectionate counsels to the candidates for the bacca- 
laureate. 



264 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



After an appropriate introduction, the worthy Presi- 
dent arranged the advice he had to give, under the two 
following particulars : 1. " You are devoted to study 
and literature; you must, then, love science, and be 
diligent in the investigation of truth. 2. You are 
above all, related to your God, as his intelligent crea- 
tures, and to the Divine Eedeemer, as lost sinners, to 
be saved by him ; you must love and experience his 
religion." 

Having expatiated upon these points, he then added: 
" Are these the counsels of old age ? Are these exer- 
cises suited to advanced years? Yes, and they are 
equally applicable to the young and the gay, to the 
strong and blooming. Ah! boast not of to-morrow. 
You know not what a day may bring forth. How 
many painful examples — how many severe warnings, 
continually solicit our attention, and exclaim louder 
than thunder, Be ye also ready. Where is young Yan 
Dike ? Last year he stood as you now stand. I had 
pressed his hand and blessed him, when I admitted him 
to the rank to which you are now raised, and he bid 
fair to live and enjoy the honors to which he had the 
fairest claim. His early attention to reading, and his 
diligent studies, had advanced him to notice. The 
mildness of his manners, his benevolent temper and 
amiable disposition, recommended him to universal 
esteem and respect, and he was still more endeared for 
having devoted himself to the ministry, and intending 
immediately to commence in the study of theology. But 
where is our dear young Van Dike ? Yonder in the 
cold grave. His dust has returned to dust. Within a 
few weeks after he had delighted this audience with a 



PKOFESSOR AT NEW-BRUNSWICK. 



265 



display of his talents, while he was preparing to enter 
upon the arduous work in which his pious heart was 
wholly engaged, he was seized with a fatal fever, which 
soon numbered him among the dead." 

" Yonder the affectionate youth was interred, near to 
his former friend, the excellent young Condict, who had 
entered into the world of spirits a few weeks before. 
He, too, was an only son, from whose talents and piety 
great usefulness was expected. Ah ! death often loves 
a lofty aim. By two sudden strokes, two youths, tow- 
ering as the cedar, under whose shade repose and safety 
had been anticipated, were in a moment brought down. 
There they lie — they lie near the consecrated spot, where 
the remains of the venerable parent, Condict, rest. Such 
a father, and such a son ! and they so quickly followed 
by such a youth ! 0 Death !" 

" Feel, my dear young gentlemen, as you ought to 
feel, when I direct your views to the tombs. Yet a lit- 
tle while, and we shall all be numbered with the mighty 
dead. The aged and the young, the lips which now 
speak these tender and affecting truths, and you who 
so attentively hear, will soon speak and hear no more 
after the manner of mortals. Oh ! then, be wise for 
eternity. Let true, vital, and experimental religion be 
your first, your chief concern. Be faithful : improve 
your talents, and occupy until the Master comes. Live 
in the Lord, and you shall be blessed when you die in 
the Lord. Live the life of the righteous, and your lat- 
ter end shall be like his. Go now under these impres- 
sions. Feel their power, and indulge their influence. 
"We take leave of you with emotions of tender affection, 
and part with reluctance. We ardently commit you, 
12 



266 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



dear young gentlemen 7 to the blessing of the God of 
salvation. Farewell." 

In 1813, the Kev. Mr. (afterwards Doctor) John 
Schureman, of New- York, was called to succeed to Dr„ 
Condict in the college. The call was accepted ; but 
the college had so greatly declined, that the estimable 
character of the new vice-president, and the ability and 
zeal with which he entered upon his duties, could not 
avail to restore it to its former prosperous state : the 
aggregate number of students continued still to dimin- 
ish. The Rev. John M. Yan Harlingen, * the professor 
of Hebrew and teacher of Ecclesiastical History in the 
theological school, departed this life about the same 
time ; and u in this event, the institution sustained," as 
was observed by the Committee, who noticed it in their 
report upon the professorate, " a serious deprivation" 
So many events of an adverse nature, and so quickly 
following each other, very naturally produced among 
some of the friends of the professorate, an impression 
that God in his providence was frowning upon the 
plan which Synod had adopted for promoting the insti- 
tution. 

A number of worthy members of the Church, residing 
chiefly in the city of New- York, who had liberally con- 
tributed to the establishment of the school in its present 
location, but, notwithstanding, had never heartily ap- 

* It is regretted that no materials have been furnished for biographi- 
cal sketches of Mr. Van Harlingen, Dr. Condict, and some other worthies, 
whose names are mentioned in the course of the narrative. Upon the 
death of Mr. Van Harlingen, the Board of Superintendents of the theo- 
logical school temporarily appointed the Eev. Peter Steddiford to teach 
Hebrew. 



PROFESSOR AT NEW-BRUXSWICK, 



267 



proved of its removal and union with Queen's College, 
now despaired of its future success, The college, upon 
which so much dependence had been placed for in- 
creasing the number of theological students, they had 
reason to fear, would, ere long, be once more wholly 
suspended — which in reality was the 'fact, within two 
or three years after. They knew, too, that the pro- 
fessor, for whose comfort and happiness they felt a 
tender concern, had gone thither, bound, as it were, 
in the spirit^ and that the funds which had been raised 
were very inadequate for his support. Thus impressed, 
and convinced, moreover, that there would be an 
immediate augmentation of the funds if the school 
were brought back to New- York, and that then it would 
be more known and popular, they were at length 
impelled to commence operations for effecting such 
transfer. 

These movements in New- York were not generally 
regarded with much favor; and the Doctor himself 
was supposed by many to have originated them, or if 
this be saying too much, to have approved and encour- 
aged them. But the following letters will show that 
his conduct in the matter was in accordance with his 
usual wisdom and piety. 

" New-Brunswick, Sept 1, 1813. 
" My Dear Sir : * * * With much interest and 
concern, I observe what you communicate in regard to 
the growing attention to the Theological Institution. 
As it is the great object to which my life is devoted, I 
can not be indifferent to any thing which relates to that 
subject. There are some things in this procedure 



268 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



which claim my adoring gratitude, and some which are 
covered with a cloud, through which I can not pene- 
trate, or discern the mind and disposal of Divine Pro- 
vidence. I am glad that an enlightened and pious peo- 
ple, who have long enjoyed the fruits of an intelligent 
and well-educated ministry, begin at length to appreci- 
ate that blessing as they ought. It will be so ; it must 
be so. The Lord's people must lay it to heart ; they 
must have the honor of bearing a part of the burden, 
in which the prosperity of Zion is so deeply concerned. 
I bless God most fervently, that they are aroused to 
see and feel, and exert themselves in this precious 
work. I consider it as a token for good, and am so far 
from discouraging their efforts, that I wish them God 
speed, and pray the sentiment may take deep root, and 
excite through all our churches an ardent zeal, which, 
if directed by knowledge, will, I am persuaded, be ac- 
ceptable to the great Eedeemer, and productive of much 
good. It is a high and noble object; but the time in 
which it commences, and the point to which it seems 
to be directed, are to me dark and inexplicable. I could 
explain what I mean by this, but it would be prema- 
ture." 

" It will suffice to observe, that after an institution 
is already established, it requires great prudence and 
caution to oppose it. The best of causes may, by pre- 
cipitation or rashness, be essentially marred. To do 
too much, may sometimes be worse than to do too lit- 
tle. Every step will require mature deliberation, and 
nothing positive with respect to the ultimate location 
ought to be immediately adopted. The subject, in all 
its bearings, is interesting in the highest degree to the 



PROFESSOR AT NEW-BBUKSWICK. 



269 



peace of the churches, and very important to myself; 
but unless I know more of tire progress and precise ob- 
ject of your friendly consultations, or until my advice 
be requested, it -would be an improper anticipation to 
suggest any particular idea or sentiment." 

" The Lord bless you both, with your dear children, 
and give you precious answers to prayer. I bless you, 
and am, 

"Dear Sir, 

u Your faithful friend and servant, 
"J. H. Livingston. 

" L L. Kip." 

" New-Bbunswick, Sept. 11, 1813. 

" My Dear Sir : It gives me pleasure to observe in 
your last esteemed favor, that the sentiments I ex- 
pressed respecting the theological institution, met with 
your unequivocal approbation." 

" It is a great object, and has engaged my attention 
and prayers many years. After the deranged state in 
which the business had been brought, by the destruc- 
tive resolutions of the General Synod, in 1797, and 
while there was not an individual who appeared in a 
series of years, to think upon the subject j or assist cor- 
dially in devising any measures for its benefit, I was 
encouraged by the overtures made by the trustees of 
this college, and hoped the dawn was opening, which 
would bring on the day for which we had so long 
waited. No objections were then made, and as all 
concurred in fixing the institution in this place, 
I considered it to be the direction of Providence, 



270 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENKY LIVINGSTON. 

and concluded I was going the right way when I 
came." 

" There is, indeed, room for amendments ; and the 
future security of the institution renders it necessary, 
in its present state, to draw such broad lines as will 
prevent every species of intrusion, and secure the essen- 
tial point ; and the perfect superintendence, for ever, in 
the hands of the General Synod." 

" The churches supposed they did what was right in 
fixing upon this place, and I thought I did what was 
right in coming here ; yet it is possible, that we were 
all wrong ; but it is also possible that, after all, it will 
be seen we have done exactly what ought to be done. 
As to the location of the institution in New- York, with 
all the advantages, which in theory appear plausible, 
there may be dangers, which, at the present moment, 
excite no apprehension ; but at a day not very distant, 
might prove exceedingly formidable. It is said, that in 
the ocean the large fishes devour the small, and it is 
certain that upon the land, something like this is often 
realized. We are, perhaps, in the safest situation when 
we remain alone, without the collision of jarring inter- 
ests, or aspiring competitors — in waters where no 
sharks can pursue us." 

" I now indulge the hope, that the time to favor 
Zion, yea, the set time, is come, because the servants of 
the Lord begin to take pleasure in her stones, and 
favor the dust thereof. The meetings you have had 
will serve very important purposes, and greatly inter- 
est the churches in this great work. I am happy that 
men of prudence, as well as zeal, are active members 
with you. Under such influence, with the blessing of 



PROFESSOR AT NEW-BRUNSWICK. 271 



the Lord, I am confident nothing rash, will be adopted, 

but much good will be produced." 

* x « * x 

" Mercies rest upon you, and all yours, always. I 
bless you, and am 

" Your affectionate and faithful friend, 

" J. H. Livingston. 

"I. L. Kip, Esq." 

Toward the close of the following year, the Doctor 
experienced a most painful affliction in the death of his 
excellent wife. They had lived together in the greatest 
harmony and love, for nearly forty years. He felt 
and mourned his loss ; but, at the same time, displayed 
under it the faith and fortitude and resignation of a 
saint, ripe himself for a transition to a better world, 
where the pangs of separation from souls congenial 
shall be known no more. On the morning of the day 
when her remains were to be interred, he wrote to 
his friend, Mr. Kip, the subjoined letter: 

"New-Brunswick, Dec. 30, 1814. 
"'My dear Friend: It is done. The conflict is 
over. She has obtained the victory, and is entered 
into rest. On Sunday morning, Mrs. Livingston was 
seized with a pain in her head, which increased and 
soon became very violent. She lay down and was 
much indisposed, but no symptoms that produced any 
alarm appeared before Tuesday, when her strength ap- 
peared to be wholly prostrated, and she sunk into a 
deep sleep, with intermediate agitations and struggles, 
without, however, being aroused from her lethargy. In 



272 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 

the evening of Wednesday, it was evident her departure 
was at hand, and without another struggle or groan, 
she gradually and gently fell asleep in the arms of her 
Redeemer. She left us a little after twelve that night. 
Before she was taken ill, she frequently expressed an 
ardent desire to be with Christ, and almost envied 
those who were called home, of which there were three 
instances in this place in the course of this very week. 
Her Lord has given her the desire of her soul, and has 
received her spirit." 

"This day her dear remains are to be deposited in 
the silent grave. I do not love my blessed Jesus any 
thing less for afflicting me. He is now very precious 
to me. All my springs are in him. He stands by me, 
and strengthens me. It is the Lord. He hath taken 
away, blessed be his name notwithstanding. It is the 
heaviest stroke I have ever received; but it is well. 
In the Lord I have righteousness and strength." 

" I can only drop a hasty line. I know your loving 
heart will sympathize with me and my afflicted child- 
ren : pray for me and them. Her sickness being only 
four days, prevented my sending in time for my dear 
son." 

" It will be proper, for the information of distant 
friends and relations, to insert the event in the papers. 
You will please to let them announce that, 1 Died, on 
Thursday, the 29th inst., at New-Brunswick, N. J., 
Mrs. Sarah Livingston, wife of Eev. Dr. Livingston, in 
the sixty-third year of her age. Them which sleep in 
Jesus will God bring with him.' 1 can now only bless 
you and yours, and am 

" Your afflicted and faithful friend, 

" J. H. Livingston" 



PROFESSOR AT NEW-BRUNSWICK. 



273 



A few days after, lie thus acknowledged the receipt 
of a letter of condolence, from the Kev. Dr. J. B. Bo- 
meyn, of New- York : 

" New-Brunswick, Jan. 3, 1815. 
" My Dear Sir : He who refines his people in the 
furnace of affliction, walks with them through the fire, 
that they shall not be burned ; and his presence and 
grace prevent the flame from kindling upon them. 1 
have always found his promise sure, and, to his praise, 
I can now humbly say, that he makes my strength 
equal to my day. Although I am cast down, yet I am 
not destroyed." 

" "It is an additional source of consolation that my 
worthy Christian friends sympathize in my sorrows. 
They weep with him who weeps, and their affectionate 
condolence is a balm to the wounded heart. I thank 
you most sincerely for your very kind letter. It com- 
forted me. It was a word in season, and suggested sen- 
timents which soothed and strengthened my soul. 
Your tender attention has increased my love for you, 
and I now know that I have found a friend upon whom 
I can lean with confidence in my declining years. 
The Lord sanctify and comfort you and dear Mrs. 
Bomeyn. 

" I bless you both, and am, most respectfully, 
" Your faithful, afflicted, yet supported 

friend and brother in the Lord, 

" J. H. Livingston. 

u Bev. Dr. Bomeyn." 

The following answer to a letter from his friend, 
Mr. Kip, of a later date, affords further evidence of the 
12* 



274 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 

pious serenity of his mind, under this sore bereave- 
ment : 

" New-Brunswick, Jan. 16, 1815. 
"My Very Dear Friend : It is kind to sympathize 
in affliction, and help bear the burdens which some- 
times, when supported alone, prove very heavy. I 
thank you for your affectionate letter. In an hour of 
trial, the darkest and most peculiar in many respects I 
have ever experienced, the Lord has not forsaken me. 
My mind is preserved in peace, and grace has prevented 
a single murmuring thought. It is all right. It is 
never convenient for us to suffer. But who shall say 
unto him, What doest thou ? The sovereignty of God 
first deeply impressed my mind, and I was afraid to 
sin. The precious relation of my Eedeemer, in cove- 
nant love and faithfulness, now prevails, and I adore 
and bless him. It is well. It is not in wrath, but 
mercy. It will work for good. He will not forget to 
be gracious." 

"I can scarcely realize what has happened, and seem 
to be not at home. The treasure and joy of the house, 
the spring of all the domestic movements, is gone. The 
change is great and essential. We begin to be com- 
posed, and my dear daughters sustained their grief and 
loss with propriety. My son has not been able to come 
down yet. His only housekeeper was at the point of 
death with the typhus fever. His last letter mentions 
a hope of her recovery. I shall be very happy to see 
you, whenever the season will permit you to come with 
safety to your own precious health. 

"Your afflicted, but faithful friend, 

" J. H. Livingston. 

"I. L. Kip." 



PROFESSOR AT NEW-BRUNSWICK. 



275 



The following is a copy of the inscription which the 
Doctor wrote, and had put upon the tombstone that 
covers his wife's grave : 

to commemorate 
Departed Excellence, 
this stone is erected 

EN MEMORY OF 

SARAH LIVINGSTON, 

BY HER HUSBAND, 

John H. Livingston, D.D. 

SHE WAS 

Born in New- York, Dec 7, 1752, 

AND 

Fell asleep in New-Brunswick, Dec. 29, 1814. 

a persevering- llfe of faith, 
of Meekness, and Piety, 

RENDERED HER 

a Blessing to her Family, 

AND ENDEARED HER 

to all who could estimate 

what is valuable 
in the Christian, 
the Wife, the Mother, 
and the Friend. 

to die is gain. 



Second Side: 

Them which sleep in Jesus will G-od bring with Him. 

Third Side : 

Farewell, blest Saint, a short farewell, 

Until we meet in realms above, 
Where joys immortal ever dwell, 

And faith and hope are lost in love. 

-Fourth Side : 

O Death, where is thy sting ! 0 Grave, where is thy victory ! 



276 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENBY LIVINGSTON. 



It has been intimated that after the death of the 
lamented Gondict, Queen's College enjoyed but a small 
share of public patronage, and was, in appearance, 
gradually verging to extinction. Such was the fact 
yet in 1815. Circumstances wore still a very unfa- 
vorable and discouraging aspect. There was now 
little probability of its ever becoming a literary insti- 
tution of any eminence, and the Doctor, whose mind 
was intend upon building up a theological seminary of 
the first character, seized the conjuncture for the intro- 
duction of a plan, which he had many years before 
suggested to some of his particular friends, and which 
was, in effect, to convert Queen's College into a theo- 
logical college. 

For some time before he had seriously revolved 
the plan, and endeavored to mature it to his own 
satisfaction. In a letter dated September 3, 1813, 
he presented it to Dr. Eomeyn, and requested a 
communication of that gentleman's ideas upon the 
subject. Whether the request was complied with, 
as Dr. E. was then about to depart for Europe, is 
not known ; but in the letter referred to, he* says : 
" The whole question seems to be reduced to two points. 
Is it practicable ? Is it desirable ? It is practicable. 
How it may be accomplished on the part of the trustees 
of the college, consistently with their charter ; on the 
part of the churches, conformably with their supreme 
prerogative in every appointment of all theological 
professorships. Query. Whether such an arrangement 
will not reduce the trustees to mere holders of the 
funds of the General Synod ? The Board of Trustees 
is composed of men of various denominations. It is 



PROFESSOR AT NEW-BRUKSWICK. 



277 



desirable on the part of the college, because, as a liter- 
ary institution, Queen's College is not necessary ; its 
funds are inadequate, and will so continue ; nor will, nor 
can it ever prosper in the neighborhood of two power- 
ful rivals ; but by assuming a new form, it will be sup- 
ported, become useful, and celebrated ; on the part of 
the churches their funds will thereby be increased and 
rendered secure : no separate interest in the institution 
will exist ; the whole will be simple, singular, and 

respectable ' 

•* * * # & 

" The Lord, your good Shepherd, go before you, 
shield you from every evil, and give you the desires of 
your heart. Live by faith. Eemember always, and 
everywhere, whose you are, and whom you serve. 
Fear not : he will be your help and shield. My fer- 
vent wishes and prayers shall follow you. When you 
return in health, I shall probably be at home in rest 
with my Divine Eedeemer and all those who have gone 
before me. If you never see me again, remember I 
was your father's friend and your friend. May you be 
long spared to be more faithful and more useful than I 
have been." 

" I have endeavored to recollect some friend in Hol- 
land to whom I could introduce you, but I do not know 
that any of them are left. Forty-three years have 
swept them all away. One name, however, was not in 
the list of the deceased which I last received. If he be 
alive, you will find in "him a pious believer, a good 
scholar, and a celebrated poet. He was born and re- 
sided in the Hague, and was my bosom friend. His 
name is Petrus Leonardus Van de Kasteele. He was 



278 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



a lawyer, and has sustained some public offices ; but 
what, or where he now is, I do not know." * * * 

While Dr. Romeyn was abroad, he addressed a letter 
to Dr. Livingston, which, because of its interesting 
statements respecting the condition of Holland at the 
time, is entitled to insertion here. 

" Utrecht, June 12, 1814. 
" Reverend and Dear Sir : Little did I expect 
when I bid you farewell at Mr. Kip's, in New- York, 
that I would, in the course of Divine Providence, have 
had the opportunity, during my absence abroad, to ad- 
dress a letter to you from this place — a place, the name 
of which must revive many tender recollections in your 
mind." 

" I am now on my return to England by the way of 
Rotterdam, having visited besides Eotterdam and this 
place, Delft, the Hague, Leyden, Haerlem, and Am- 
sterdam. To all these places, except Delft, I have been 
kindly furnished with letters from Dr. Wernnick, Min- 
ister of the Dutch Church in England, which procured 
a ready access to the persons addressed. These per- 
sons promptly furnished me with the information de- 
sired, which, if I live to return and have the happiness 
of meeting you, I shall take pleasure in communicating 
to you." 

" The character of this people, my dear sir, has great- 
ly deteriorated in moral and religious excellence since 
your residence. The various revolutions which have 
taken place since 1787, and particularly since 1795, 
have had the most fatal effects upon the veracity and 
honesty of a large proportion of the community. Every 



PEOFESSOR AT NEW-BRUNSWICK. 



279 



revolution brought along with it a new administration 
of government, which endeavored to support itself by 
oaths. These oaths, so often repeated, and so often 
broken, ultimately destroyed the solemnity of the oath, 
which, in its turn, destroyed a proper regard to their 
promise in individuals. Besides, during the dominance 
of the French, the requisitions demanded were frequent, 
consisting of a certain proportion of the income and 
stable property of individuals. The payment of these 
was accompanied, in every instance, by the oath of him 
who paid. As these requisitions were heavy, the citi- 
zens were tempted to transgress, to save themselves 
from want. The judgments of Grod upon the country 
have not produced suitable humiliation and repentance 
in the inhabitants. The public worship of God is not 
so well attended as it used to be previous to 1795. The 
young and rising generation are very generally French- 
ified, loose in their principles, and negligent of all re- 
ligious duties. Great apprehensions are entertained by 
the pious fathers and mothers in this Israel, for the fu- 
ture, in consequence of this state in which the youth 
have fallen." 

" The doctrines of grace are still taught in the uni- 
versities and pulpits. The elder ministers are more 
engaged than the younger, and also more practical. 
Many, too many of the latter, and of students in theo- 
logy, are destitute of personal religion, though not im- 
moral. They are inclining to liberal views in religion, 
and approximating remotely to a scheme of doctrine, 
which is hostile to the truth as it is in Jesus." 

" The good old works of Hellenbrook, Schortenghius, 
Brakel, etc., are going fast out of date. Among the 



280 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



more polished part of Christians their day is over ; but 
among the lower classes they are still in some repute. 
The works of a Dom. Kist, in Dort, are popular above 
all other practical works. The character of his writ- 
ings, as the evangelical clergy and laymen assure me, 
is sound and excellent. The works of Doddridge, John 
Newton, and Win. Eomaine, are also very popular, and 
doing much good. 

"Alphonso Turretene, to my grief, is superseding 
Francis, his father, in the estimation of the learned. 
Vitringa and Venema stand high, but Witsius is rather 
on the wane. Michaelis, Koppe, and Ernest, of the 
Germans, are in great demand, but only as biblical 
critics." 

" The Sabbath is most woefully profaned. During 
Napoleon's government, the theatre was open, on Sab- 
bath evening, in Amsterdam and the Hague. Still 
many stores are open during the day in Amsterdam 
and Rotterdam, and during the evening, in the former 
place, many more. The impressions of gratitude for 
deliverance from the French, at first, were deep, and 
the expressions thereof very general. But the people 
begin to forget the Lord and the works of his hand. 
Indeed, it appears to me, from what I have seen and 
heard, that heavier judgments are in store for these 
lands. I fear these judgments will be chiefly spiritu- 
al." 

"In my wanderings, I have met one of your old 
friends, a Mr. Ledabore, of Rotterdam. He begged 
me, when I wrote to you, to say that I had become 
acquainted with the person who, forty odd years ago, 
wrote a couplet of poetry in your Album. He charged 



PROFESSOR AT NEW-BRUNSWICK. . 281 



me to mention him affectionately to you in my letter. 
This charge I now cheerfully, and with peculiar plea- 
sure, fulfill." * * * * * 
" Yours, in the best bonds, 

. " John B. Bomeyn. 

" Eev. Dr. Livingston." 

At the session of General Synod held in Albany, 
June, 1815, the plan of a theological college, to be 
formed by a union between Queen's College and the 
professorate, was submitted by the committee upon the 
professorate, and adopted. 

The plan was given in the form of a quotation, in 
these words: "1. Let this college, when formed, have 
for its object, primarily, the education of young men 
for the Grospel ministry. For securing this object, the 
religion of the Scriptures, as explained in the Belgic 
Confession of Faith and Heidelberg Catechism, shall 
be the basis of all the instruction given in this institu- 
tion. The teachers, if not clergymen, must be pro- 
fessors of religion, or at least, must subscribe their 
assent to the doctrines contained in the above-mention- 
ed Confession and Catechism." 

" 2. As it is not probable that so many youths, de- 
signed for the ministry, will offer themselves for ad- 
mission in this college, as to occupy the time and 
exercise the talents of the teachers, let a select number, 
designed for any other profession (say 20, 30, 40, 50) 
be admitted, speciali gratia, who shall be subject to all 
the rules and regulations of the college. The age at 
which students are to be admitted, is to be not less 
than 14 years." 



282 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



"3. Let there be four professors, who shall be ap- 
pointed as follows : 1. The professor of theology, by 
the General Synod of the Church, which appointment 
the trustees shall approve. 2. The professor of biblical 
criticism, in the same way. 3. The professor of eccle- 
siastical history, in the same way. 4. The professor of 
mathematics, etc., by the trustees alone. 5. Let the 
three theological professors be thus appointed by Gen- 
eral Synod, who shall specify their departments in 
theological studies : their other services to be regu- 
lated by the trustees. 6. Let the two funds be blended 
in one, with an understanding that Synod will raise, 
annually, half the support of the professors whom they 
appoint." 

The committee then add, that they " are fully im- 
pressed with the utility of such a plan, as calculated to 
answer the great end contemplated by the Eeformed 
Dutch Church, in furnishing the Church with a pious 
and able ministry. They recommend it to the serious 
attention of Synod, and suggest the propriety of ap- 
pointing a committee, to lay it before the trustees of 
Queen's College, for their consideration." 

A committee was accordingly appointed to confer 
with the Board of Trustees, on the subject of the 
above plan, which there can be no doubt had been 
originally drawn up, and was now proposed by the 
Doctor. 

" The relief of this aged and venerable teacher, the 
plan of the school, its respectability and usefulness, 
together with the reputation and interests of the Church 
at large," it had been previously judged, required " the 



PEOFESSOR AT NEW-BKUXSWICK. 



283 



establishment of, at least, another professorship ;" and 
the Consistories of the churches in Albany and New- 
Brunswick, having made certain liberal proffers toward 
the object, for a term of years, this Synod resolved to 
appoint an additional professor. Pursuant to this reso- 1 
lution, the Kev. John Schureman was chosen professor 
of pastoral theology and ecclesiastical history. The 
appointment was accepted. 

A circumstance occurred at the present meeting of 
the Synod, which is thus noticed in the minutes : " Seve- 
ral gentlemen informed the Synod, that as a testimony 
of the high respect which they entertain for the Eev. 
Dr. John H. Livingston, they have requested him to 
permit Mr. Ames, of the city of Albany, to take his 
portrait, which they design to present to the Board of 
Superintendents, for preservation in the Theological 
Hall, in New-Brunswick. Besolved unanimously, that 
the thanks of this Synod be presented to those gentle- 
men, and that they have liberty to deposit said portrait 
in the Theological Hall." 

The plan of the theological college was formally 
acceded to by the Board of Trustees, and at an extra- 
ordinary session of the Synod, convened in the autumn 
of this year, all the details of the same were digested 
and settled ; but the following year, the trustees found 
themselves under the necessity of informing the Synod, 
that owing to the inadequacy of their funds, they could 
not " support the- present establishment of professors 
and teachers in the college." This being the fact, it 
was not possible immediately to carry the plan into 
complete operation, and the literary exercises of the 
institution were in consequence discontinued. 



284 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 

While lie instructed bis "dear young men," as lie 
was wont to call them, with an ability, diligence, and 
zeal, which the Board of Superintendents, in their 
annual report upon the state of the school, frequently 
commended in strong terms, and while he sought, in 
every practicable way, to render the institution under 
his care more extensively useful, the Doctor devoted 
much of his attention to the general interests of the 
Church. One illustration of this is found in his disser- 
tation upon the question relative to the lawfulness of a 
marriage with a deceased wife's sister — a question 
which had often occasioned considerable discussion in 
the several judicatories of the Church, and which was 
yet, as many believed, involved in no little difficulty. 
He was fully convinced of the unlawfulness of the con- 
nection ; and in the spring of 1816, gave to the public 
a pamphlet, containing a very elaborate argument 
in support of the then existing law of the Church upon 
the subject. A copy of this pamphlet, entitled " A 
Dissertation on the Marriage of a Man with his Sister- 
in-law," he presented to the Synod. The Synod re- 
turned their thanks for the book, and resolved that it 
should be deposited among their archives. 

It has been seen that the Doctor rather discounte- 
nanced the design which had been formed in New- York, 
to transfer the school to that city. His views became 
afterwards somewhat changed, in consequence, proba- 
bly, of the disappointment of his calculations with re- 
spect to the theological college. The thing was now 
again seriously intended ; and at the same time, some 
gentlemen at the North contemplated the establishment 
of a theological school within the bounds of the Par- 



PROFESSOR AT NEW*BBOTTSWICK. 



285 



ticular Synod of Albany. Upon both these projects 
he was consulted ; and his hope of seeing his expecta- 
tions realized at iSTew-Brunswick being almost annihi- 
lated, he lent an indulgent ear to both. 

The following letter relating to them, will be perused 
with interest : 

" New-Brunswick, Dec. 3, 1816. 

"My Dear Friexd : That it is practicable to es- 
tablish a theological seminary in the city of ISew- 
York, I never doubted ; to obtain it was always my 
wish and object. But after waiting and toiling, with- 
out the countenance and assistance either of the public 
or even any individual, I at length desponded, and 
sunk under the weight of an institution which had 
pressed upon me alone so many years. No friend, no 
brother, to strengthen my hands, console my heart, or 
encourage me in my labors ; no compensation to me, 
nor any provision devised for a successor in the work ; 
I was under the necessity of dismissing any further ef- 
forts, and suffering the institution finally to fall, or to 
remove to some other place, at the sacrifice not only of 
interest but of every thing dear and precious to my 
heart. It was to me a species of martyrdom, which 
nothing but a zeal to promote the prosperity of the 
Church, could suggest, and a humble confidence in the 
presence and approbation of my Divine Master, could 
have enabled me to sustain. 7 ' 

11 The experiment has been made ; and while con- 
curring events in Providence indicate that the place in 
which the institution is now fixed is not the most eligi- 
ble, it has served at length to arouse the public mind, 
and excite efforts to make suitable arrangements for an 



286 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



honorable and permanent establishment. If this ob- 
ject may be attained, if this end may be effected by my 
coming here, I shall be finally reconciled to the losses 
and griefs I have sustained, and will consider my suf- 
ferings and labors to be crowned with ultimate success. 
Nothing, therefore, upon my part can arise to frustrate 
you, and the faithful friends who associate with you, 
in the plan for removing the institution to New- York." 

"Last summer, when nothing but mere conversa- 
tion for bringing the theological college to New- York 
had yet taken place, I expressed, without the least re- 
serve, my approbation to have an institution erected at 
Schenectady, especially if it could be exclusively ef- 
fected by the northern interest. If it must sink at 
Brunswick, I would wish it to arise anywhere, rather 
than to witness its total failure. But I have not com- 
mitted myself by any promise, either express or im- 
plied. I said to them in the north, as I say to those 
in the south, that I will wait to see what the Lord may 
please to do in behalf of this work ; and wherever and 
whenever I may be convinced it is his will I should 
remove, I feel ready and disposed to go ; but without 
such conviction, I shall assuredly remain where I am." 

" The communication you. made in your last es- 
teemed letter is very interesting and acceptable. You 
and your worthy associates well know the magnitude 
of the object; you fully estimate what is honorable 
and safe, and I am confident the Committee will pro- 
pose, and all will adopt, the most prudent, effectual, and 
speedy measures for accomplishing the plan. My pray- 
ers are for you, and I trust and am sure, that my God 
will bless whatever shall be subservient to his glory, 



PROFESSOR AT NEW-BRUNSWICK. 287 



and for the best interests of his Church. Go on, and 
prosper ! The Lord be with you all, and honor you 
in being made his instruments to promote his glorious 
work !" 

"My children unite in love to you and your dear 
family. I bless you and all yours, and am ever 
" Your faithful friend and servant, 

" J. H. Livingston. 

"1 L. Kip, Esq." 

In another, to the same individual, dated Jan. 28, 
1817, he further observed: " The details of the proceed- 
ings of yourself and worthy associates, excited my ad- 
miration, and prompted an adoring view of the pro- 
cedures of Divine Providence. I know that the Lord 
will fulfill his gracious designs of good and prosperity 
to our Eeformed Church. There are permanent and 
large blessings in store. I have waited long to see and 
realize them. If the steps I have taken shall prove the 
means of exciting his people to exert themselves ; if 
they shall ultimately lead to that point of prosperity, 
which will be an answer to our prayers and hopes, my 
soul will rejoice, and the long train of privations, self- 
denial, and species of martyrdom I have suffered, will 
be abundantly compensated in the prosperity of our 
precious Zion." * 

At his own request, the whole plan which his friends 
in New- York had adopted in this interesting affair, was 
soon after laid before him ; but to some parts of it he 
was strongly opposed, particularly to one which related 
to the formation of a Board of Trustees, to have the 
charge of the moneys that might be raised. In his 



288 MEAIOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



letters upon this exceptionable point, he maintained, 
with great force and zeal, the ability and the right 
of General Synod to manage their own pecuniary con- 
cerns, without the intervention of a Board of Trustees. 
The plan was then modified, in conformity to the views 
he had expressed, and suitable exertions were made to 
obtain such an amount of subscriptions under it, as 
would give it a claim to the serious attention of the 
Synod. 

The next May, he wrote his friend as follows : 
" With much satisfaction, I noticed in your esteemed 
letter, the great exertions you have made, and what 
you intend still to do. Your subscriptions are indeed, 
thus far, very great, and a good index to your pros- 
pects. I know well the difficulty which you have ex- 
perienced in bringing forward this arduous business, 
even thus far. Nothing has certainly been neglected 
upon your part ; and whatever may be the issue in 
Divine Providence — whether it shall be judged safe 
and expedient to remove the institution to New- York, 
upon the provisional proposals which are now suggest- 
ed, or to continue it where it still is at New-Brunswick — 
you will assuredly not lose your strenuous labors, nor 
your gracious reward. It will be said of you, as of 
David : 1 Forasmuch as it was in thine heart to build 
an house for my name, thou didst well, in that it was 
in thine heart.' The Lord, I hope, will bless you for 
this, whatever may be the issue ; and I trust the spirit 
which is now aroused will prompt all who wish to 
build that house, to unite with vigor and zeal in pro- 
moting the institution, whether it shall remain where 
it now is, or be removed. It is a great and common 



PROFESSOR AT NEW-BRUNSWICK. 289 



cause. No partial views or objects can be consulted, 
or will be admitted. Divine Providence will fix the 
point ; and in that point, wherever it may be, all our 
combined efforts, without further distraction or division 
of sentiment, must cordially concentrate. For myself, 
free from all prejudice or private interest, I will wait 
to see what our Divine Eecleemer will direct his Church 
to determine ; and in that determination, I shall, through 
grace, calmly acquiesce." 

The General Synod, at their meeting in June of this 
year, (1817,) had the application of the Particular Synod 
of Albany, and that of the New- York Association, duly 
presented for their consideration. "With respect to the 
first, it was resolved, for reasons stated in the preamble 
to the resolution, "That the request of the Particular 
Synod of Albany, to establish a theological school 
within their bounds, is altogether inexpedient, and 
therefore be not granted." Touching the second, as the 
proposals of support to the seminary, in case of its be- 
ing transferred to New- York, were considered liberal, 
a committee was appointed to ascertain whether the 
trustees would, " in case of said removal, consent to de- 
vote the proceeds of the moneys already put into their 
hands in trust by the General Synod, and the proceeds 
of the moneys donated by the late Eev. Elias Van 
Bunschooten, so far as they" could " do it consistently 
with the terms of his original grant, to the support of 
the school in New- York, or in any other place in which 
General Synod think it may be most prosperously sup- 
ported." 

But, notwithstanding the appointment of this com- 
mittee, the friends of a removal were pretty well con- 
13 



290 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



vinced, it would appear, by what they had seen and 
heard in the Synod, that their application would not 
succeed. For, in answer to a letter which he had re- 
ceived from his esteemed correspondent, a few weeks 
after the adjournment of Synod, the Doctor thus wrote : 
" Your observations upon the situation of our institu- 
tion, are prudent and weighty. The enumeration of 
so many formidable 'nothings' suggests serious dis- 
couragements, and raises prospects not very flattering 
to those who fervently wish to promote the best inter- 
ests of the Church. A divided sentiment in regard to 
the best means, and most of all, a lukewarm zeal for 
obtaining the great end in view, have hitherto paralyzed 
every effort in this great business. Our forlorn Zion 
may surely adopt the sad complaint of the prophet : 
" There is none to guide her among all the sons whom 
she hath brought forth ; neither is there any that taketh 
her by the hand, of all the sons that she hath brought 
up." The people are universally able and willing to 
give, but there is no uniform, no efficient plan laid be- 
fore them, to concentrate their offerings." 

" But if all other exertions, when laid in the balance, 
should ultimately amount to 'nothing/ let not that 
reproachful term be inscribed upon your noble design. 
Go on. You have proceeded too far now to recede. 
Only let it be in Christian forbearance, and perfect 
good humor, while you adhere scrupulously to the 
established old maxim, that in every question, the ma- 
jority must always decide. If all our works be done 
in love, and with mutual confidence, they will certain- 
ly end well. Terrific and appalling as every thing re- 
specting our valuable establishment at the present mo- 



PROFESSOR AT NEW-BRUNSWICK. 



291 



ment may appear, my hope and expectation are not 
reduced to despair. All these fearful nothings will yet 
produce a something that shall gladden our hearts, and 
bring down blessings upon our children. The Lord 
reigneth. There are prayers before the throne, of an- 
cient date, which are not yet answered, but will most 
assuredly prevail. The Shepherd of Israel will watch 
over his flock, and raise up such helpers as shall unite 
in sentiment, and prove successful in accomplishing his 
high purposes. And I wish to persevere in consider- 
ing you and your worthy associates as standing among 
the foremost of such helpers. There I rest my hope. 
I know we must be active and faithful in the use of 
suitable means, and that the whole disposal of them is 
of the Lord. I wait to experience his mercy. I am 
deeply interested in the result. I have made greater 
sacrifices to advance this establishment than any other 
individual, and all my comforts and usefulness are at 
stake." 

"As to my private sentiments, although they are 
matured, as it regards what I esteem the best place for 
the institution, and the most productive methods for 
bringing it to perfection, yet I cheerfully submit to the 
decision of the majority of my brethren, and without 
obstinately insisting that others shall think exactly as 
I do, I will cheerfully acquiesce and cooperate with 
them, wherever, by such indications in his holy Provi- 
dence, the Lord shall convince me that I must go or 
remain, there shall be my dwelling." 

In another letter, dated Oct. 1, 1817, there is the fol- 
lowing paragraph : " Yesterday, and the day before, 
the Board of Trustees here have been in session, and 



292 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENBY LIVINGSTON. 



formed such decisions as in their wisdom they judged 
proper. I intended to give you the sum of their de- 
liberations and resolutions ; and, indeed, waited with 
my answer to your kind letter for that purpose. But 
an authenticated copy is ordered to be communicated 
to the conferring commitcee, and I believe our worthy 
friend Isaac Heyer, who returns this day, has the copy. 
I refer you, therefore, to that document, and to his ob- 
servations. The Lord, I trust, will overrule the vari- 
ous efforts of the friends of our Zion, for good ; and 
the different views, with respect to the means, which 
have prevailed among those who equally aim at the 
same end, will be made ultimately to produce the great 
and desired object." 

The Synod met, pursuant to adjournment, in the lat- 
ter part of the present month, and put the question re- 
lative to a removal of the school at rest. The trustees 
had refused to give their consent to such removal, and 
so long as that consent was denied, the Synod believed 
that their covenant with the Board required the con- 
tinuance of the Institution at New-Brunswick. This 
being their view, the application from New- York was, 
of course, dismissed ; and would have been dismissed, 
no doubt, had the promises of support been ever so lib- 
eral and satisfactory. 

When apprised of the result, which, if not altogether 
unexpected, it is probable was not altogether the most 
pleasing one that could have happened, the Doctor 
showed no uneasiness, expressed no disapprobation; 
but, on the contrary, appeared to be quite satisfied, and 
evinced the same generous devotedness and zeal that 
had heretofore marked the whole of his conduct. 



PROFESSOR AT NEW-BRUNSWICK. 293 



A short extract from a letter to his friend in New- 
York, written Nov. 15, 1817, must here be pre- 
sented: "I hay e not yet seen any copy of the acts of 
the last adjourned Synod, but I understand it was the 
full and decisive resolution of the members to establish 
the theological institution at New-Brunswick, while 
strenuous exertions are to be made for obtaining a ne- 
cessary support. What those exertions are to be, and 
whether they will prove productive and sufficient, I do 
not know. But it seems, that in the present situation 
of the institution, an honorable opening is now before 
you and your pious associates to do something that 
will be good and great, and independent of precarious 
contingencies, whatever may be the issue of the present 
efforts, and wherever the institution may be finally 
fixed. I will not mention to what I refer, but cheer- 
fully leave to yourself the honor of first suggesting, as 
well as accomplishing, the whole of such a noble and 
generous plan. I will only say, it would add a wreath 
of reputation to your name, and, what is of infinitely 
higher importance, it would make glad the city of our 
God. The whole might be brought to perfection, not- 
withstanding any objections from different interests, 
and even could be put into operation immediately ; 
and when thus accomplished, might be afterwards, 
with more splendid effect, presented to the Synod, 
with an assurance of their approbation, gratitude and 
praise." 

And in another, dated March 3, 1818, he observed : 
" "What a kind Providence will yet effect in favor of 
our important institution, and what will be the final 
result of the different opinions of those who are all 



294 , MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



equally united in wishing to promote its highest inter- 
ests, I do not know. He who lias all hearts under his 
almighty control, who loves his Church more than we 
do, and whose thoughts are not as our thoughts, will 
assuredly take care of his own cause, and make all 
work for good. The tributary streams of various 
opinions will finally concentrate, and an union of 
strength and prosperity crown the faithful wishes and 
strenuous efforts of his dear people." 

Thus much, of his correspondence upon this subject 
has been submitted, because it was deemed important 
to exhibit precisely the course he adopted, in all pro- 
ceedings that affected an institution in which both the 
Church and himself had so deep an interest. Hence- 
forth he seemed to consider the school as permanently 
fixed at New-Brunswick. 

The General Synod of this year (1818) elected the 
Eev. Tho. De Witt, to succeed the late Dr. Scliureman 
as Professor of Biblical Literature and Ecclesiastical 
History ; the appointment, however, was not accepted. 
Inconsequence, the Board of Superintendents deemed it 
their duty to provide temporary instructors, and they 
accordingly appointed the Eev. (afterwards Dr.) James 
S. Cannon, to teach ecclesiastical history, church, gov- 
ernment, and pastoral theology ; and Mr. John S. 
Mahon, to teach the Hebrew and Greek languages. 
The services of these gentlemen, in their respective de- 
partments, gave great satisfaction. 

Early in the ensuing autumn, death again entered 
his dwelling, and removed from him one of his grand- 
daughters, the wife of the Bev. B. Hoff, in the twenty- 



PROFESSOR AT XEW-BRUXSWICK. 



295 



second year of lier age. Of this afflictive event, lie 
gave a hasty account to his friend Mr. Kip, the same 
day it occurred, in the following letter : 

" Xew-Bruntswick, Sept. 5th, 1819. 
"My Dear Friend: After indulging the hope that 
our precious Sarah was gradually reviving from her 
tedious indisposition, and would again enjoy her former 
health, a decisive event has prostrated our fond expec- 
tation, and finished what appertained to my amiable 
child. In the course of last week, she evidently began 
to lose strength ; yet her vigor and cheerfulness strug- 
gled against disease, and prevented her from complain- 
ing. Our fears were not yet alarmed. Yesterday 
morning she sat at breakfast with us, but soon laid 
down, to rise no more in this life. During the evening 
and night she was rapidly declining, and this morning 
at daylight, without a struggle, groan, or motion, she 
gently fell asleep in the Lord. I never saw a death 
so easy and tranquil. Her reason continued to the last 
moment. She could speak- but little ; but all, I trust, 
was well." 

" You can judge of our feelings. Mr. H. is supported 
through grace, in his grief. The children are overwhelm- 
ed with grief. My heart is pierced ; but I trust the Lord 
will uphold and comfort us in our distress. I drop 
this line to communicate the event, and because I know 
you sincerely sympathize with us." 

" We send our tender love to you and the family. I 
bless you and all yours, and am, most affectionately, 
my dear friend, 

" Your servant and friend, 

" J. H. Livingston." 



296 MEMOIK OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 

To this painful dispensation of Divine Providence, 
soon succeeded another of a similar nature, in the 
decline and death of his second granddaughter. Under 
date of February 6, 1819, he again wrote : " My dear 
Eliza is daily consuming. She is reduced to a mere 
skeleton. Her power of digestion appears to be wholly 
lost. The sustenance she receives is little or nothing. 
It is astonishing that with so little food she still sur- 
vives. We have cause to fear that some sudden prostra- 
tion of her little remaining strength will close the scene. 
Yet she sits up, walks through the house, and is with us 
at the table ; but she appears sensible of her situation, 
and I hope and pray the Lord will prepare my pre- 
cious child for her great change. She is my only 
remaining companion in my family here, and the 
dispensation of Providence is severely felt. My 
heart replies, It is my father — it is my Saviour — his 
blessed vail be done. It is all right. He does all 
things well. Oh ! if my name be written in the Book of 
Life I" And in April he communicated the sad tidings 
of her departure. 

New-Brunswick, April 5, 1819. 
"My Dear Friend: The scene has closed. My 
dear Eliza rests. She died this morning, at ten o'clock. 
Without a struggle, or the least apparent agony, she 
gently sunk into the bosom of her Divine Shepherd and 
Saviour. Her mind has been uniformly serene. She 
knew her change was approaching, but was not terri- 
fied. Without fear or unbelief, she seemed cheerfully 
to commit her departing spirit into the hands of the 
precious Jesus." 



PROFESSOR AT NEW-BRUNSWICK. 



297 



"I send my love to you and all yours. Eemember 
me at the throne of grace. I have only time to bless 
you and assure you that 

u Iam yours, 

" J. H. Livingston." 

The Lord had now added grief to his sorrow ; but 
the Lord, nevertheless, was his strength and his fortress, 
and his refuge in the day of affliction. The foregoing 
letters afford pleasing evidence of his pious resignation 
and strong faith, under these repeated and heavy strokes. 
At his advanced period of life, he keenly felt the shock 
of successive bereavements, but his Christian confidence 
did not fail. And although often suffering under the 
increasing infirmities of age, he continued, without any 
serious interruption, the discharge of his official duties. 

The Board of Superintendents, in their report of this 
year, in speaking of him, thus expressed themselves : 
" With gratitude to the great Head of the Church, the 
Board inform Synod, that the health and usefulness of 
their venerable Professor Livingston are still continued ; 
and that at his advanced age, he is, with his usual de- 
votedness and ability, blessing the Church, by commu- 
nicating to her successive ministers that theological 
information for which he is so eminently distinguished." 
They further stated that they had " respectfully re- 
quested the Eev. Dr. Livingston to publish his Lec- 
tures, as a measure calculated to be of vast advantage 
to the students, to the institution, and to the Church 
at large." With this request the Doctor did not see 
fit to comply. 

At the close of their report, the Board expressed a 
13* 



298 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



wish, that the vacant professorships might be filled as 
soon as possible. The Synod accordingly proceeded 
forthwith to fill one of them, and elected the Eev. 
(now Dr.) John Ludlow the Professor of Biblical 
Literature and Ecclesiastical History. This gentleman 
discharged the duties of his office with distinguished 
ability, and with, the full confidence of all the churches 
in his growing usefulness, until 1823, when, to the 
great regret of the Synod, he considered it his duty to 
accept a call which he had received from the North. 
Dutch Church of Albany. The Eev. (afterwards Dr.) 
John De Witt was then chosen his successor. 

The desire of seeing this school suitably endowed 
and established before he should be taken from the 
Church, prompted him the following year to make one 
more effort to awaken some zeal in its favor. In a 
letter to his friend, who has been so often mentioned, 
he observed : "It is said the night is darkest just be- 
fore daylight. With the opening dawn, the gloom 
and shades will be dispersed. I hope against hope, 
and am assured that I shall not be confounded or 
ashamed with the result. Why some withdraw their 
subscription, and the most appear discouraged or luke- 
warm, I do not know. I leave it in his hand, and to 
his holy disposal, who will finish his own work, and do 
all things well." 

Under the influence of this confidence, that the work 
was of the Lord, and would not be suffered to fail, he 
again wrote to the same person, some time after, in a 
letter bearing date Dec. 21, 1820: "It certainly can 
answer no purpose to waste our time and strength in 
lamentations, or to expect that mere talking and form- 



PROFESSOR AT NEW-BRUNSWICK. 299 

ing plans, without putting them in execution, will 
ever produce the great end in view. It was a wise 
measure in the Synod to form a Board, in whose wis- 
dom and energy the great concerns of the theological 
institution should be vested ; and better men could 
not be found than those who constitute that corpora- 
tion. But what have these good men effected ? The 
dispute and contest with the trustees of Queen's Col- 
lege has, indeed, been carried on, and it is not yet de- 
cided. But, after all, what is the amount of this whole 
dispute ? What is the paltry sum the trustees assert 
to be liquidated ? And, indeed, what is their whole 
fund, and even the Yan Bunschooten legacy, which is 
out upon bonds that are not paid? The whole — all 
that is in the hands of the trustees — if it was all put 
into your hands, would be but a drop of the bucket ; 
it would not be sufficient to support one professorship. 
Would it not be better, instead of spending your time 
and energy in prosecuting this dispute, to form some 
enlarged plans for creating and enlarging a substantial 
fund?" 

" The only foundation upon which a public insti- 
tution can safely rest, is a fixed fund, whose interest 
will be equal to the support. To depend upon cent 
societies, and occasional contributions, is futile and un- 
certain. The plan to be adoped is to raise that fund ; 
but how to raise it is, indeed, the question. Our 
brethren, the Presbyterians, raise it, and we might 
raise it in the same way. They employ agents. Their 
Synods resolve to raise a professorship, which requires 
$25,000, and they have raised it. And we can do the 
same ; if our corporation will exert their influence and 



300 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



energy, employ agents, and recommend eacli Synod to 
raise one professorship, it will be done. We have suffi- 
cient strength, of members and of wealth to accomplish 
every thing that is necessary ; but they must be directed 
and efficacious plans formed and executed, to bring 
their strength and wealth to their proper point. * * * 
But, surely, in the city of New- York, on Long-Island, 
and here, in the Jerseys, within the bounds of the 
Synod of New- York, we might find twenty men who 
would give or loan $250 to the Synod, and one hundred 
more who would give $100, and so down to lower 
sums, by which we might form an aggregate of 
$25,000 ; at any rate, we ought vigorously to make the 
trial. *,.*■*■.* Unless more energetic measures 
are taken than have been during the present year, a 
dissolution of the institution must inevitably follow." 

This was the last measure the pious father suggested 
to save from ruin, and place upon a firm foundation, 
an institution which had been so long the object of his 
prayerful solicitude, and the prosperity of which he 
viewed as intimately connected with the prosperity of 
the Church, and the glory of the Kedeemer's kingdom ; 
and this last measure he had the pleasure to see adopted 
and crowned, under the Divine blessing, with the de- 
sired success. 

In 1822, it was represented to the General Synod, 
that certain members of the Church were persuaded 
" that one hundred subscribers might be obtained for 
$250 each, for the purpose of endowing a professorship 
in the theological college ;" and a committee was 
accordingly appointed to solicit subscriptions to the 
object, who prosecuted the work assigned them, with 



PROFESSOR, AT NEW-BRUNSWICK. 



301 



great diligence and zeal. The Doctor opened the sub- 
scription list with his own name, for $500, and at the 
next meeting of Synod, it appeared that a sum sufficient 
for the purpose specified had been subscribed in the 
southern section of the Church. 

Persons were then appointed to endeavor to procure 
subcriptions in the Synod of Albany, for the endowment 
of a third professorship, and the liberality of this part 
of the Church proved in the end fully adequate to the 
object contemplated. But the Doctor himself saw only 
the auspicious commencement of this second enterprise 
in the good cause. He had seen enough, however, to 
convince him that the cause had triumphed, that this 
school of the prophets would no longer subsist upon a 
scanty and precarious charity, but would be henceforth 
amply supported, and remain for ages to come, a foun- 
tain whence should issue streams to make glad the city 
of God. His expectations, therefore, were not finally 
disappointed, and he could now go down to the grave, 
assured that he had not labored in vain. He would 
fall as a courageous, persevering, skillful commander 
falls upon the field of combat; when, after many arduous 
struggles, after many disheartening repulses, after trying, 
apparently to no purpose, all possible plans; when he is 
ready to give up all as lost, and just at the point of 
death, he hears at last the thrilling shout of victory, 
and exclaims, / can depart in peace — all is well. 

After the death of Dr. Livingston, the literary exer- 
cises of the institution (now called Rutgers College, in 
honor of a citizen of New- York, well known for 
his patriotism, piety, and munificence) were revived 
by the General Synod ; and under the auspices of the 



802 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



pious and learned Dr. Milledoler, the president and 
divinity professor 7 and of his two able colleagues, Drs. 
John De Witt, and James S. Cannon, (appointed a 
professor in 1826,) with their associates, a professor of 
languages, and a professor of mathematics, both highly 
distinguished for their talents and competency in their 
respective departments, the institution rapidly attained 
a high rank. It ought not to be forgotten, however, 
that for this revival of the college, the Church is in- 
debted, in no small degree, to the talents and enterprise 
of the late Eev. Dr. Selah S.Woodhull, a man who 
was excelled by few in energy, zeal and perseverance, 
and whose vigorous exertions in behalf of the college, 
during the short period he was connected with it, as 
well as his many able services in the Church for a series 
of years, ought not to be left unnoticed. (See Appen- 
dix J.) 

Dr. Livingston was, as has been said, a warm friend 
of the various religious and benevolent institutions of 
the day. He was, however, not insensible to the just 
claims of denominational societies, and, while cherishing 
a catholic spirit of cooperation with all who hold the 
Head, was anxious to see the Church he held so dear 
actively engaged in the distinct and independent prose- 
cution of the Master's cause. This fully appears in the 
following extract from a letter, dated Jan. 29, 1822, 
acknowledging his election to the post of Vice-Presi- 
dent of the Missionary Society of the Eeformed Dutch 
Church, a new society which owed its existence to the 
exertions of the Eev. Paschal N. Strong. (See Ap- 
pendix K.) 

" When I read your last very acceptable and affec- 



PROFESSOR AT NEW-BRUNSWICK. 803 

tionate letter, I was under the impression that you in- 
tended soon to write again, and explain more minutely 
the constitution and the contemplated operation of the 
Missionary Society you have lately organized, and for 
this I have waited. But it seems I was mistaken, and 
I can not postpone any longer to thank you for the 
communication, and to express my cordial concurrence 
in what has been done. While all the orthodox 
Churches are constituent parts of the one great family 
of which our Divine Eedeemer is the glorious Head and 
Lord, each denomination is under the most imperious 
obligation to make the most strenuous exertions to pro- 
mote his cause; and it seems this can be most effectually 
promoted by uniting their distinct efforts and resources, 
each in their own districts, but all subservient to the 
same end, with mutual love and fraternal confidence, 
without dissension, opposition, or discord. It is evi- 
dently upon these principles you have proceeded in 
forming a society which will be subservient to the 
common interests of the Gospel, while it will be under 
a control which we are persuaded will insure the pre- 
valence of sound doctrines, and enlarge the boundaries 
of our beloved Church. I very sincerely acquiesce in 
,what you have done, and thank you for the place you 
have given me in the direction, and very cheerfully 
assure you that I shall be happy to promote its success, 
to the utmost of my power." 

To the Society for Meliorating the Condition of the 
Jews, he was a decided and zealous friend, but his 
views of its true policy differed materially from those 
of a majority of the directors, who then contemplated 



304 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



the establishment of a colony of converted Jews in this 
country. Upon this subject, he addressed a long letter 
(afterwards published in the Magazine of the E. D. 
Church) to the President of the Society, the late Peter 
Wilson, LL. D., dated July 24, 1823, in which he took 
a luminous view of the whole question, and advanced 
many cogent arguments to prove the inexpediency of 
the proposed colony. This letter, though written in 
the 78th year of his age, is a production of distinguished 
ability. The soundness of its views is well attested by 
the fact that they have long since been adopted by the 
Society. 

A number of facts have been related already, illus- 
trating the depth and fervor of his personal piety. But 
towards the close of life, he seemed habitually to con- 
verse in heaven, to forget things which were behind, 
and to reach forth unto eternal things with increased 
ardor. In his ordinary intercourse with his friends, 
and in almost all his epistolary correspondence of the 
time, there was abundant evidence of a highly devo- 
tional frame of spirit, and great readiness to depart and 
be with Christ. 

" My health, within some time past," he said in one 
letter, " is greatly advanced. I feel free from those^ 
complaints which, during the past year, have distressed 
me ; and my soul is engaged, more than ever before, to 
redeem the time, which with me is short — to grow in 
grace, and in the knowledge of my blessed Lord and 
Saviour, and to finish my course with joy, and in- 
creased faithfulness and usefulness." In another : " For 
myself I feel great tranquillity respecting the issue. My 
course is probably nearly finished, and I expect and 



PROFESSOR AT NEW-BRUNSWICK. 305 



hope soon to change my trials and tears, my siglis and 
conflicts, for high, hallelujahs and perpetual praises." 
And in another: " My health is gradually becoming 
better and more confirmed, yet I feel very feeble, and 
am not yet restored to my former vigor. Perhaps I 
shall never be. It is all right. I have had a long 
day, and a good day ; and if at evening time it shall be 
light, the mercy will be great, and I shall commit my 
departing spirit into his hand who has redeemed me, 
without distracting fears or unbelieving doubts.' 7 

An additional evidence of this heavenly temper of 
mind is given in the following memorandum, found 
among his private papers : 

"May 30, 1823. 
"My birth-day. I was born May 19, Old Style, 
1746, and am this day seventy-seven years old. I have 
upon this solemn, and to me very interesting period, 
set apart the day for fasting, and prayer, and thanks- 
giving." 

" After renewing my covenant with God my Ee- 
deemer, with deep humiliation and repentance, my soul 
found peace, and I was helped to cast all my burdens 
upon the Lord, and hope in his salvation. I have 
never passed a day with equal fervency of devotion, 
and my exercises closed with a pointed application of 
the precious promise, Hosea 14 : 4, 1 1 will heal their 
backslidings, I will love them freely ; for mine anger 
is turned away from him.' " 

" I know whom I have believed, and am per- 
suaded that he is able to keep that which I have com- 
mitted unto him against that day. I enter upon my 



306 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 

seventy-eighth, year with humble faith, and hope, and 

joy." 

For another year, it pleased the great Head of the 
Church to preserve the health of his servant, and to 
permit him to continue his useful labors. The Board 
of Superintendents, in their report upon the state of 
the school, for the year ending with May, 1824, thus 
express themselves in part : " We rejoice with thank- 
ful hearts, in being enabled to state to General Synod, 
that, under the smiles of a gracious Providence, the 
theological college has been kept in successful opera- 
tion through another year, and the prescribed course of 
instruction has been regularly, diligently, and success- 
fully pursued. Through divine mercy, the life of our 
venerable senior Professor has been spared, and so firm 
has his health been, that, in his seventy-eighth year, he 
has been enabled to attend to every lecture in its sea- 
son, without feeling it to be a burden ; nay, with the 
alacrity and delight which ordinarily belong to much 
earlier life." 

His health remained after this uniformly good, until 
about the commencement of the following year. He 
then, in a letter to his son, of January 6 ; 1825, com- 
plained of some indisposition, but did not apprehend it 
to be of a serious nature : " For several days past, I 
have had, at times, a pain in my left side, which is 
frequently severe, and afterwards less violent. To 
what cause to attribute it, or what name to give it, I 

do not know; Dr. T supposes it will require 

bleeding, and he is to call to-day for that purpose. It 
may be so ; yet I am not fully convinced that the loss 



PROFESSOR AT NEW-BRUNSWICK. 307 

of blood would be beneficial. Old men do not need 
depleting, but rather nourishment. From the symptoms 
of this pain, which is not always stationary, but often 
moves, I am apt to think it is a rheumatic affection. 
I never had the rheumatism until this winter, but it is 
now often very sharp ; and I think this pain in my 
side may be of that kind. The Lord, who has promised 
never to leave nor forsake me, will take care of me, 
and make this, also to work for my good." 

" By a letter from New- York, I find that my old 
friend, Col. Eutgers, is sick, and old Mrs. Laidlie sup- 
posed to be dangerously ill. When my fellow travel- 
lers are near their home, I can not be very distant from 
it. I know whom I have believed, and whom I have 
served from my youth up ; and I am persuaded he will 
keep what I have committed to him." 

About a week after, and only a few days before his 
lamented decease, he addressed two more letters to his 
son, to testify his sympathy in the death of an infant 
member of the family ; and as it is probable they were 
the last the good man ever wrote, the compiler pre- 
sents them entire. 

" New-Brunswick, Jan. 13, 1825. 
" My Dear Son : With tender love and much sym- 
pathy, I assure you of my participation in your afflic- 
tion and grief. Oh ! if I were now with you, I would 
embrace you both, and press you to my paternal bosom ; 
I would join my tears with yours ; I would soothe 
your sorrows, and direct you to the precious fountain 
of substantial comfort, the only source of true consola- 
tion. He who wounds can also heal. Afflictions are 
dispensed for our good ; and if we see his hand, and 



308 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



with, humble resignation adore and believe, they will 
ultimately become blessings. He can, and he actually 
does, make all things work for good to them who love 
Grod, and serve him. 

"When I received your letter of Saturday, (on Mon- 
day evening,) I was much alarmed, and waited anx- 
iously for your next, which came to hand last night. 
While life remained, hope might be indulged ; but the 
quinsy is a dreadful disease, especially to children, and 
I feared it would terminate, as it has done, fatally. 

" Sweet lamb! Her sufferings were not as long as 
often is experienced ; but they have proved the means of 
her removal from a world of pains and sorrows ; and 
she is translated to a better world, where there is no 
crying nor death, but all is joy and rest, and ever- 
lasting and uninterrupted peace. I firmly believe that 
all who die in infancy, before they are capable of actual 
sinning, are saved through and by the Lord Jesus ; 
for those who have sinned in mature age, bitter re- 
pentance and firm faith are indispensable." 

" She was an amiable and lovely child. All who 
knew her bear this testimony of her — a sweet little 
angel ! From our mutual distant residence, I am pre- 
cluded from an intimate acquaintance, and have only 
seen them at their baptism. But I shall see little Sarah 
in glory. 

"Now, my dear children, mourn as Christians. 
When griefs roll heavily on, when you seem to be 
sinking as in deep waters, attend to the sovereign com- 
mand and affectionate exhortation of our blessed Lord 
Jesus. Go, says he, into your chamber, shut the door, 
and there, in humble and fervent prayer, call upon your 



PROFESSOR AT KEW-BRUNSWICK. 



309 



heavenly Father ; and He who seeth in secret will re- 
ward you openly. Pour out your hearts before God in 
prayer. He is a refuge and help to all who look to 
him with broken hearts. The Lord will teach you to 
pray. Eead the 46th Psalm. It begins with faith and 
hope, and it closes, v. 10, with the solemn exhortation, 
Be still, and know that I am God, Eead also the 12th 
chapter to the Hebrews. Both of you must read it 
with patience and attention. If the Holy Ghost en- 
ables you to understand and believe that word, it will 
do your souls good. None but God can help and de- 
liver you. To him you must come. He calls, and has 
long called you. Blessed be his name for the promise, 
that he ivho cometh, he will in no wise cast out. 

"I am glad to observe that you had recovered from 
your late indisposition ; this was a tender mercy previ- 
ous to your impending affliction. 

" I pray for you both very often every day. I bless 
you most tenderly, and wish to comfort you. The 
Lord spare the remainder of the dear flock. 

" Again, and again, I bless you, and am 

" Your loving father, 

" J. H. Livingston." 

" New-Brunswick, Jan. 15, 1825. 
" My Dear Son : The concluding solemnities are 
accomplished. By your last letter, I see that the re- 
mains of our late dear little Sarah are deposited where 
they will remain for ever, hidden from our view, until 
the trumpet of the great Archangel will summon all 
the dead to appear and come to judgment. Then 
those who died in infancy will shine in the robes of the 



310 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



Redeemer's righteousness ; and all of mature age will 
appear before the judgment-seat of Christ, that every 
one may receive the things done in the body, accord- 
ing to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad. 
2 Cor. 5 : 10. Then we must render an account for the 
talents we have improved, and for the talents we have 
buried and misimproved. 

" Awful day of solemn decision ! We can not fly 
nor escape from God. Now is the day of salvation. 
The door of mercy is not yet shut. Afflictions are a 
call from God. Begin where you first departed. Re- 
turn to him, and he will return to you. Fly to the 
Lord Jesus for refuge, and by repentance and faith, 
give yourself to the Divine Saviour, and you will find 
peace. Your troubled heart will rest, and he will help 
you, even in your temporal wants. You will never 
find rest, nor comfort, nor deliverance, until you seek 
God in prayer, and come to Jesus. 

" I must constantly mention this to you, whether you 
understand or relish it or not, for there is no peace out 
of Christ, and you will find it so. 

" I know you now feel greatly afflicted. I help you, 
my dear child, to bear your burdens. I am afflicted 
with and for you, and most fervently pray that you 
may obtain grace to support and comfort you, under 
present as well as impending evils. 

"I am glad you have written to the dear boys, and 
communicated the mournful event to them. They will 
also feel much affected with our grief. Tell my dear 

F that she must look to the Divine Redeemer. He 

will comfort her, and give peace to her mind. He 
hears us when we pray ; and when we read his word 



PROFESSOR AT NEW-BRUNSWICK. 



811 



lie instructs us to know and feel its meaning. With 
the heart we believe unto righteousness, and with the 
mouth confession is made unto salvation. The Lord, 
I hope and trust, will give her substantial consolation, 
and you will both experience his supporting grace and 
sanctifying influence. 

"The winter has hitherto been remarkably mild. 
My health continues good, excepting the pain I men- 
tioned in my left side. It has in part subsided. I have 
not yet been bled for it ; it is not constant, but some- 
times returns, especially when I speak much in my 
lectures ; yet its continuance is not long. 

" Now my dear, my sweet, my beloved children, I 
mourn with you. I help you to bear your burdens ; 
my heart and love are with you. I bless you both 
most tenderly, and all the precious flock, and am your 
loving father, J. H. Livingston." 

Between the date of this letter and the Thursday fol- 
lowing, (the 20th), on the morning of which day he was 
found sleeping in Jesus, there was no visible change in 
the state of his health. During the most of the interim, 
he enjoyed apparently his usual strength and spirits, 
and on Wednesday a more than ordinary degree of 
both, as was remarked by some of his friends. In the 
morning of this day, he paid several visits ; when re- 
turned home, he delivered a long lecture to the stu- 
dents upon the subject of Divine Providence ; and the 
evening he spent in conversing with his reverend col- 
league, chiefly upon divine things, with unusual cheer- 
fulness and animation. After an interesting family ex- 
ercise, in which he appeared to draw very near to Grod, 



812 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENKY LIVINGSTON. 



and to remember every object dear to hittij lie retired 
to his chamber, making no complaint of indisposition ; 
but the next morning, at the time , he was accustomed 
to perform the same duty, he was no more. His spirit 
had taken its flight, and mingled with the spirits of the 
just made perfect, around the throne of the Lamb in 
heaven. One of his little grandsons, who had slept 
in the room with him, but had seen or heard nothing 
previously, to excite a suspicion of what had happened, 
now called him, and said : " Grandpa ! it is 8 o'clock." 
But there was no response nor sign of his awaking. 
The family then became alarmed, and it was soon dis- 
covered that he had ceased to breathe. The precise 
moment at which he expired could not, of course, be 
known ; but there was some reason to suppose that the 
event had not taken place long, or more than an hour 
before that sad discovery was made. He lay as one 
in a sweet sleep. His perfectly composed countenance, 
the natural position of his hands and feet, the un- 
ruffled state of the bed-clothes, all told that his dissolu- 
tion had been without a struggle and without a pang. 

In the manner of his removal, a persuasion which 
he had often expressed, was singularly verified. Till 
toward the close of his life, he had suffered much 
from a dread of the pain he would have to endure, when 
his soul should be breaking loose from her earthly 
tabernacle, and frequently prayed that he might be deli- 
vered from the distressing apprehension. He was at 
length delivered from it ; and what was very remark- 
able, said afterwards more than once, that when the 
hour for his departure should arrive, he believed he 



PROFESSOR AT NEW-BRUNSWICK. 313 



would go off in a sudden and easy manner. So, indeed, 
lie went off, as circumstances indicated ; and, 

M So fades a summer cloud away ; 

So sings a gale when storms are o'er ; 
So gently shuts the eye of day ; 
So dies a wave along the shore." 

The next Sabbath, his remains were committed to 
the house appointed for all living, with suitable solem- 
nities, in the presence of a large concourse of persons, 
who, notwithstanding the unpleasantness of the weather, 
which at the time was very unfavorable, had come toge- 
ther from New- York and elsewhere. The corpse was 
taken into the Dutch Church during the performance 
of a service, appropriate to the solemn occasion, by the 
Eev. Dr. Milledoler, and was then interred. On the 
following Sabbath, a number of pulpits were hung with 
mourning ; and in several churches in the connection, 
funeral sermons were preached, some of which were 
afterwards published.* 

On the 16th of February, 1825, the General Synod 
of the Eeformed Dutch Church convened in extra ses- 
sion at Albany, when the following resolution, relative 
to the death of Professor Livingston, was unanimously 
adopted : 

" Whereas it has pleased the gread Head of the 
Church to remove, by death, on the 20th of January 

* The Sermons published were those of the Rev. Dr. De Witt, of 
New-Brunswick ; the Rev, Mr. (now Dr.) N. J. Marselus, of Green- 
wich, New-York ; and the Rev. Mr. (now Doctor) 0. C. Cuyler, cf 
Poughkeepsie. 

14 



314 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 

last, our late venerable friend and father in the Lord, 
the Eev. John H. Livingston, DD., S.T.P., in the 79th 
year of his age, the 55th of his ministry, and 41st of 
his labors as professor of theology ; this Synod, deeply 
impressed with the sentiment that believers, and espe- 
cially able and faithful ministers of Jhe Gospel, are the 
salt of the earth, and that it is a Christian duty to la- 
ment their loss and cherish their memory, do resolve, 
that they deeply lament the providence which has 
removed a man greatly beloved and highly useful: 
that they desire in humble submission to be still, and 
know that God hath done it ; that they bless the God 
of Israel, who hath spared him so long, made him so 
eminently useful, and given him so easy and happy a 
passage to the kingdom of glory, full of years, full of 
honors, and full of faith ; that they will ever cherish 
the most respectful and affectionate regard for a name 
and memory so dear." 

Pursuant to another resolution of the same Synod, 
a monumental stone was subsequently erected over the 
grave of the Professor, with this inscription in the Latin 
and English languages : 

TO THE MEMORY 

OF THE 

Rev. JOHN H. LIVINGSTON, D.D., S.T.P., 

Born at P o ughkeeps ie, 
State of New- York, 
May 30, 1U6. 

Educated for the ministry 
at the University of Utrecht, in Holland. 



PROFESSOR AT NEW-BRUNSWICK. 315 



Called to the Pastoral Office of the 
Reformed Dutch Church in New- York, 11 10. 

Appointed by the General Synod 
of the 

Reformed Dutch Church in America, 

THEIR 

Professor of Didactic and Polemic Theology, 
in 11 84; 
and elected to the 
Presidency of Queen's College, 
New-Jersey, 
in 1810. 

there, in performance of the duties of his office, and blessed 
in the enjoyment of mental energy, high reputation, 
and distinguished usefulness, he suddenly but 
sweetly fell asleep in jesus, january 
20, 1825, in the 79th year of his age, 
the 55th of his ministry, 
and the 4 1st of his 
professoral 

LABORS. 



in him, with dignified appearance, extensive erudition, almost 
unrivalled talents as a sacred orator and professor, were 
blended manners polished, candid, and attractive, all enno- 
bled by that entire devotion to his saviour which became 
such a servant to yield to such a master. 

In token of their Gratitude for his Services, 
and Veneration for his Memory, 
the General Synod have ordered this 
Monumental Stone to be 

ERECTED. 



316 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



CHAPTEE X. 

HIS GENERAL CHARACTER. 

When any attempt is made to portray the excellen- 
cies of one who was great and useful in his day, it is too 
often supposed to imply a design to set him forth as a 
perfect character. No such object is sought in the present 
instance. The subject of this memoir had his share of 
human infirmity; but he was, notwithstanding, an emi- 
nently devout Christian, who followed hard after God ? 
and whose life was a bright and continuous display of 
the power of divine grace upon the heart. The short- 
comings sometimes attributed to him, were exaggerated 
by a misconception of his natural character and peculiar 
circumstances. 

Dr. Livingston was a tall and well-formed man, of a 
grave countenance, of an easy and polished address. 
There was something in his appearance calculated to 
impress even a passing stranger, and make him feel that 
here was a man who challenged more than ordinary 
attention and respect. This was sometimes mistaken by 
others as an evidence of self-elation and haughtiness, 
and this view, as counterbalanced by other well-lknown 
traits in his character, was well expressed by the gentle- 



HIS GENERAL CHARACTER. 



317 



man who was once overheard to say of him: " That's 
the proudest man and the humblest man ; the politest 
gentleman and the greatest Christian I know." Dr. 
Livingston's pride was not inconsistent with humility, 
with true politeness, or with lofty attainments in piety. 
It was, therefore, not the sin which God hates. Such a 
pride as consisted in a consciousness of what was be- 
coming himself, he indeed possessed; and he well knew 
how to maintain, at all times and in all places, the 
dignity of his official character as an ambassador of 
Christ. But no one could show less of the pharisaical 
spirit, which says: " Stand by thyself, for I am holier 
than thou;" and no one could exhibit in his habitual 
deportment towards others, even of the lowest estate, 
especially if they were disciples of Christ, a more kind 
and affectionate temper of heart. 

It was sometimes discoverable in conversation, that 
the Doctor estimated highly the advantages of his 
foreign education. To hear him express his opinion of 
the merits of those distinguished divines at whose feet 
he had placed himself when in Holland, one was half 
inclined to believe that he thought all others mere 
novices in comparison, and that he greatly underrated 
the theological knowledge which had not been obtained 
in some of the celebrated schools of Europe. "When it 
is considered, however, that his Holland friends treated 
him with marked attention, and that he was a favorite 
with the professors of the University, from whom, both 
before and after his return to America, he received very 
gratifying marks of respect, the manner in which he 
occasionally referred to the instruction he had enjoyed, 
was certainly very excusable ; and the more so, as new 



318 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



and strange doctrines were almost daily issued from the 
press, which being frequent topics of discourse, naturally 
led him to recommend old divinity as the best, and to 
censure, in pretty strong terms, the insipience of modern 
times. 

He was thought by some to be fond of praise, and 
there is foundation for the opinion. Expressions of 
gratitude and approval from men of character and piety 
were grateful to him, but not in a very inordinate 
degree. He had too much genuine humility to relish, 
and too much penetration to be deceived by, extravagant 
compliments. As is the case with all men of promi- 
nence and popularity, his patience was often tried by 
sycophants, to whom, for the time being, he was com- 
pelled to yield a passive attention, but the silence or 
even the courtesy of a gentleman under such circum- 
stances can not fairly be resolved merely into gratified 
vanity. 

In the opinion of a few, the Doctor displayed what is 
called the pride of years. Now it is true that he did not 
believe that young men, however respectable for talents, 
knew more than their fathers in the Church. And 
when any of them urged with great confidence and 
zeal sentiments which in his view affected the estab- 
lished doctrine or practice of the Church, he would 
treat their course rather as a sally of puerility than as 
the result of deep research and ripe experience. The 
manner of an opponent in debate would sometimes 
provoke him to a little piquancy of reply. Still he was 
never known to fail in tenderness and respect to the 
very youngest of his brethren, when engaged in either 
private or public dispute with them, if they treated him 



HIS GENERAL CHAEACTER. 



319 



with, tlie consideration due to his age and character, and 
station. And if ever his feelings were wounded by any 
incidental personal observations, a suitable acknowledg- 
ment instantly soothed them, and reinstated the offender 
in his affections. 

It it scarcely necessary to advert to the surmise of a 
few that he was of a covetous disposition. That he con- 
sidered it a Christian duty to take care of his own ; that 
he was somewhat exact in pecuniary transactions ; that 
he was willing to receive a proper remuneration for 
ministerial or professional services, is not denied ; but 
these facts indicate no inordinate desire for gain. In 
his house he was hospitable ; in benefactions to the 
poor, though he made no parade with them, few went 
beyond him ; and to benevolent or religious societies, 
he cheerfully gave of his substance. Let the reader 
recollect the number of years during which he served 
the Church as professor gratuitously; his removal to 
Long-Island, in compliance with the request of the 
Synod, at the sacrifice, voluntarily made, of the half of 
his ample support in the city ; his subsequent removal 
to ISTew-Brunswick, at an advanced age, when the 
moneys subscribed for his maintenance there were far 
from being sufficient for the purpose, and were yet in a 
precarious state ; and his own liberal subscription of 
8500 for the endowment of another professorship ; and 
he will see ample evidence of a spirit the farthest re- 
moved from the love of filthy lucre. Enough has now 
been said upon the subject of his infirmities, whether real 
or supposed; he certainly was not without some; he was 
himself very sensible of many, and bewailed their influ- 
ence ; but amidst the excellent qualities, intellectual and 



320 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



moral, for which he was distinguished, they were seldom 
so visible as to excite particular notice. 

The prominent features of the Doctor's character 
have been incidentally pointed out in the preceding 
account of his life, but it is proper that, in this chapter, 
they should be collectively and fully exhibited. 

Doctor Livingston was naturally of a mild and affec- 
tionate disposition. No one could be long in his com- 
pany without discovering the kindness and tenderness 
of his heart ; and while he was so easy and endearing 
in his manners that the small as well as the great, the 
poor as well as the rich, felt quite at home in his pre- 
sence, he was so polished and dignified, that both were 
equally restrained from the use of any improper free- 
doms, or impertinent and offensive behavior. In the 
reception and entertainment of his friends, to the very 
last, he displayed the ardor and sprightliness of youth, 
and was attentive without irksome ceremony, cheerful 
without levity, and communicative without repressing 
in the least that free interchange of remark, so essential 
to agreeable conversation. It was impossible that he 
should not be a leading person in every social circle ; 
but he assumed no overbearing air, to put others to 
silence, and fix the eyes of all upon himself. There 
was an urbanity about him, which, notwithstanding his 
evident superiority, set at ease the thoughts and feel- 
ings of the plainest or humblest individual in the com- 
pany, and invited him to take part in the conversation 
of the moment ; and scarce any one had a better talent 
in giving to an occasional conversation, whatever might 
happen to be the subject of it, such a turn as was cal- 
culated to subserve the advancement of religion. He 



HIS GENERAL CHARACTER. 



321 



was, moreover, the tender husband, the affectionate 
father, the faithful friend. 

To the natural sweetness of disposition and engaging 
courteousness, which made him so captivating in the 
intercourse of private life, he added a finely endowed 
and cultivated mind. He was not distinguished, in- 
deed, for fertility of imagination, or for originality and 
sublimity of thought ; but he had a sound, acute, dis- 
criminating, comprehensive intellect — one of more than 
ordinary capacity and force, and well furnished with 
various and useful knowledge. His reading was ex- 
tensive. He was a man of general science, and was 
intimately acquainted with the Latin, Greek and He- 
brew languages, and the several branches of polite lit- 
erature. But in professional learning, he was unques- 
tionably preeminent, and had scarce a compeer in the 
country. Theology was his favorite study ; and whether 
he conversed, or preached, or lectured, he showed that 
he was deeply versed in the mysteries of the kingdom 
of heaven, that he was perfectly familiar with every part 
of revealed truth, and could illustrate and defend it 
with singular ability, that he had read, with great care, 
many of the best works upon every subject of theolo- 
gy, and thoroughly studied the sacred Scriptures. 
And with all his various and profound learning, was 
connected a deep, experimental acquaintance with the 
power of saving grace. He was a divine taught of 
God ; he was a Christian. But to enter somewhat 
more into detail, some of his leading traits of character 
may be specified. 

I. Doctor Livingston was eminently a man of dis- 
cretion. 

14* 



322 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



Throughout the whole course of his public life, in 
trivial as well as important matters, in private inter- 
course, in ecclesiastical assemblies, and in the perform- 
ance of pastoral or professoral duties, he discovered 
an extraordinary measure of sound practical wisdom. 
His circumspection, as to all he said or did, was by 
some indeed thought excessive, and to show constitu- 
tional timidity, and it is possible that upon some occa- 
sions, he may have carried it too far ; but it proceeded 
from principle, from a desire to keep a conscience void 
of offence towards God and towards man ; in other 
words, he habitually felt the influence of the fear of 
God, and consulted the best interests of the Eedeemer's 
kingdom. He certainly did not possess that bold and 
adventurous spirit which does not hesitate to encounter 
the greatest apparent dangers, or essays to bear down 
all opposition ; yet he evinced no want "of resolution 
and courage in supporting the doctrines and discipline 
of the Church, or in prosecuting steadily, amid mani- 
fold discouragements and formidable obstacles, plans, 
the accomplishment of which involved the future wel- 
fare of the Church. In the discernment of characters, 
in seeing at once what would be the consequences of 
the adoption of any proposed measure, and in suggest- 
ing the best means for effecting an important object, 
he was surpassed by few ; and however his discretion 
may have been sometimes misconstrued, it was one of 
his most prominent virtues, and a virtue, without the 
exercise of which he never could have succeeded in 
terminating the celebrated quarrel which at the com- 
mencement of his ministry divided the Church. In the 
difficult situation in which he was then placed, and often 



HIS GEXERAL CHARACTER. 



323 



afterwards, in circumstances of peculiar perplexity, he 
exhibited a moderation, a judgment, a prudence, which 
prevented many troubles, and led to great and bene- 
ficial results. 

IL Another of the characteristics of this excellent 
man, was a decided and warm attachment to evangeli- 
cal truth. 

He loved the doctrines of grace, and he taught 
them as they are revealed in the Gospel, in all his 
pulpit discourses, professoral lectures, and more private 
catechetical or conversational instructions. Though 
not ignorant of the idle and pernicious speculations 
zealously disseminated under different names, in every 
age of the Church, they constituted no part of his 
creed. He could not endure to see men pretending to 
be wiser than God, and attempting to explain away 
doctrines above the comprehension of finite minds, but 
clearly delivered in the sacred oracles. He firmly 
believed in the depravity and ruin of our natural state, 
and that it is only by the interposition and death of 
the Lord Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God, that par- 
doning mercy is extended to any of the lost children of 
Adam. He believed that the great and good Shep- 
herd gave his life for the sheep ; that he died the just 
for the unjust ; and that the saints were from the 
beginning chosen of God to salvation, through sancti- 
fication of the Spirit and belief of the truth. He 
believed that the elect sinner is accepted as righteous 
in the sight of God, only through the finished right- 
eousness of the Redeemer, imputed to him and receiv- 
ed by faith ; that his heart is renewed by the super- 



324 



MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



natural and irresistible influence of the Holy Ghost ; 
and that the work thus begun by omnipotent grace, is 
by the same grace carried on and completed ; in other 
words, that he is kept by the power of God, through 
faith, unto salvation. He believed in the necessity of 
practical godliness as the genuine fruit of living, sav- 
ing faith ; and he further believed, that all who should 
be found destitute at last of that holiness which the 
Gospel requires, would be punished with everlasting 
destruction from the presence of the Lord and from 
the glory of his power. The doctrine of salvation by 
grace, through the sacrifice of Christ, and all the 
truths connected with this grand article of the Gos- 
pel, he ardently embraced, and steadfastly maintained, 
as the faith once delivered to the saints ; and the 
preservation of orthodoxy in the Dutch Church is to 
be attributed, in no small degree, to the orthodoxy 
of him who, for so considerable a period, presided over 
her school of prophets, and who remained untainted 
and unshaken by the errors which were so prevalent 
in former years. The full extent of the blessing enjoy- 
ed in the possession of such a man to prepare those 
who are to proclaim the riches of Christ to dying sin- 
ners, can not easily be estimated. To comprehend it 
we must take into view not only the benefit of his 
ministrations to the hundreds and thousands who heard 
the Gospel from his lips, but also the results flowing 
from the ministry of the one hundred and twenty 
young men whom he trained for the sacred office, some 
of whom at this moment are among the brightest orna- 
ments of the Church, and eminent for their success in 
winning souls to Christ. 



HIS GENERAL CHARACTER. 



325 



The doctrines lie prized to such, a degree, he taught 
with a peculiar unction, simplicity, and force. When 
he preached, he commanded the deepest attention. His 
noble appearance, imposing action, singular but impres- 
sive gestures — graceful enough in him, however awk- 
ward they would be in another person — and the agree- 
able modulations of his voice, soft and tender, or grave 
and authoritative at his pleasure, fixed every eye upon 
him when he was in the pulpit, and opened every ear to 
catch what he might utter. But, apart from his interest- 
ing manner of preaching, his sermons were generally so 
well digested, discovered such a knowledge of the human 
heart and of the operations of divine grace, were so richly 
fraught with evangelical sentiment, and contained so 
many searching appeals to the conscience, that he could 
not be heard with indifference or inattention. 

The genuine exercises of a Christian he could por- 
tray with a masterly hand, and in healing the wounded 
spirit, strengthening the weak hands, enlightening and 
encouraging those that walked in darkness, his pulpit 
addresses were extensively owned of his divine Master. 
It was his delight to preach Christ as the way, the 
truth, and the life, and to exhibit, in all their importance 
and loveliness, the precious blessings purchased by the 
blood of the cross ; and many of his pious friends can 
recollect, how naturally, and how aflfectingly ofttimes, 
when descanting upon the riches of redeeming grace, 
he would relate what the Lord had done for his own 
soul. 

He usually preached, as has been remarked before, 
from brief notes or skeletons ; and having a ready com- 
mand of thought and of suitable expression, his dis- 



826 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON 



courses, while methodically arranged, were so perspicu- 
ous, so plain, so free from all scholastic starchness, as 
to be adapted to the capacity of the most illiterate of 
his hearers. 

In teaching theology as a science he was not less 
successful in presenting such exhibitions of the different 
parts of his own well-arranged system, so as to give his 
students a clear and connected view of divine truth, and 
promote in them the cultivation of personal piety. He 
had, in fact, a peculiar talent in bringing his instructions 
within the comprehension of the dullest intellect, and of 
exciting in the heart correspondent devotional feelings. 
It is not surprising, therefore, that his preaching was 
popular and useful, and that his students have been 
found, in general, when they entered into the service of 
the sanctuary, thoroughly indoctrinated, skillful in 
handling the word of righteousness, and zealous in their 
great work. 

III. This venerable man was remarkable for a certain 
captivating tenderness in his deportment towards young 
persons. 

Earely, perhaps, is a pastor more respected and loved 
by the youth of his charge than Dr. Livingston was by 
the juvenile part of his congregation, during his minis- 
try in the city of New- York. Whenever and wherever 
he met with any of these lambs of his flock, his atten- 
tions to them were of the most kind and winning na- 
ture. By calling them his children, by gently laying 
his hands upon the head and blessing them, or saying 
a few words expressive of his affectionate concern for 
them, and by other similar acts of endearment, he 



HIS GENERAL CHARACTER. 



827 



gained tlieir esteem and love, and made impressions 
upon tlieir minds which could not soon be forgotten, 
and which, through, the divine blessing, were the means 
of drawing a number to Christ. There are still living 
some of his catechumens, who cherish to this day a 
pleasing recollection of his paternal and insinuating 
manner at the weekly recitations of the catechism. 

The same attractive, tender attention he uniformly 
showed to his students, or ' ; dear young gentlemen,'' as 
he used to frequently style them. He treated them as 
his children. When they visited him, he received them 
with gladness ; when they took leave of him, he gave 
them a fathers blessing. In all his intercourse, he 
evinced, in different ways, the deep and earnest 
solicitude he felt to have them grow in grace, and 
become able and faithful ministers of the Xew Testa- 
ment. In reference to this fact, the Eev. 1ST. J. Mar- 
selus, D.D., who studied theology under him, thus 
speaks in a sermon preached upon the occasion of his 
death : Xor is there so much as one, who has enjoyed 
the benefit of his instructions, but can testify with what 
affection and tenderness he often exhorted his students 
to cultivate personal religion and growth in grace, to 
estimate duly the value of souls, to become well 
grounded in the truth, to hold fast the form of sound 
words, and to contend earnestly for the faith once 
delivered to the saints. And frequently, in reference 
to those whom he had fitted for the ministry, would 
he use that declaration of the beloved apostle : 4 1 have 
no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in 
the truth.' " 



IV. In contemplating the character of Dr. Livingston, 



328 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



the uniformly elevated state of his devotional feelings 
claims a special notice. 

Estimable as lie was in many other respects, this con- 
stituted his crowning excellence. A more lively disci- 
ple of the blessed Jesus than he was, is seldom to be 
found. His heart was ever full of Christ, and out of 
the abundance of his heart his mouth spake. The most 
common occurrences served to call forth from him some 
suitable expressions of the pious fervor of his soul ; and 
no man could more happily or more naturally inter- 
weave with his discourse upon ordinary subjects, reflec- 
tions of a serious nature. 

One or two little incidents, illustrative of this trait 
in his character, it may not be amiss to relate : 

The Doctor and the ex-King of Spain happened once 
to be fellow-passengers on board of one of the North 
Eiver steamboats. As the Doctor was early in the 
morning walking the deck, and gazing at the refulgence 
of the rising sun, which appeared to him unusually at- 
tractive, he passed near the distinguished stranger, and 
stopping for a moment, accosted him thus : " How glo- 
rious, sir, is that object !" pointing gracefully with his 
hand to the sun. The stranger assenting, he imme- 
diately added: "And how much more glorious, sir, 
must be its Maker, the Sun of Eighteousness !" A 
gentleman, who overheard this short, incidental con- 
versation, being acquainted with both, introduced them 
to each other, and a few more remarks were inter- 
changed. Shortly after, the Doctor again turned to the 
ex-king, and, with that air of polished complaisance for 
which he was so remarkable, invited him first, and then 
the rest of the company, to attend a morning prayer. 



HIS GENERAL CHARACTER. 



329 



It is scarce necessary to add, that the invitation was 
promptly complied with. 

At another time, when the Doctor was journeying, 
he invited his fellow-travellers to unite with him in an 
address to the throne of grace. One of them — a lady — 
was much displeased at the imitation, and refused to 
attend the exercise. From an adjoining apartment, 
however, she heard the good man's prayer, which made 
such a deep and lasting impression upon her mind, as 
ultimately induced the important inquiry, What must 
I do to be saved ? Some considerable time after the 
occurrence, this lady called to see the Doctor, at his 
house in the city. She had come on from the South, 
where she resided, for the purpose, it is presumed, of 
spending the summer in a more healthy climate. The 
Doctor did not recognize her at first, but upon her 
relating, very minutely, the circumstances of her beha- 
vior at that accidental interview, he remembered her ; 
and great was his joy, now that he saw her a peninent 
sinner, and understood from her that the prayer which 
she had despised had been answered in her conversion. 
A word in season, how good is it ! And how often 
might its goodness be felt and seen, if every follower, 
and especially every ambassador, of Christ, would avail 
himself of every suitable opportunity presented in pro- 
vidence, in conversation and prayer, to commend reli- 
gion to sinners. 

But it must not be supposed that it was only when 
exposed to the observation of worldly persons, that the 
Doctor's demeanor was so consistent with his profession. 
He was the devout Christian at home as well as abroad. 
In his daily conversation with the members of his fa- 



380 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



mily ; in ordinary intercourse with his friends ; in ex- 
changing a few words with a person in the street ; in 
visits to the afflicted ; in private or official interviews 
with the students ; in all his correspondence, whether 
it was designed to promote friendship, or related simply 
to business ; in short, in all the different relations and 
circumstances in which he could be seen, the fervor of 
his piety was seen likewise. 

He loved his Bible. The testimonies of the Lord 
were his delight and his counsellors. He consulted 
them daily ; not because it was necessary for him to do 
so for professional purposes, for in him the Latin adage, 
Bonus textuarius est bonus tlieologus, was fully exempli- 
fied. He was a good textuarist, well furnished with 
texts of Scripture to support all he taught, and could 
with admirable ease and point at any time employ 
the language of Scripture in common discourse. But 
that he might cultivate religion in his own heart, he 
regularly perused the sacred volume. The writer was 
one day in the Doctor's study, and taking up the 
Bible, to look at a certain passage, the venerable 
man put this question to him : " Do you read that book 
much?" and then observed : " It is a precious book ; I 
read it every day, and though I have read it again and 
again, I never open it but I discover something new in 
it — something that had not occurred to me before ;" 
and further, said he, "I find it very profitable, and it 
is my constant practice to select a part of what I have 
been reading to engage my meditations through the day, 
when I have leisure." 

He w as habitually attentive to the duties of the 
closet. He was truly a man of prayer. He spent 



HIS GEKEKAL CHAEACTER. 



331 



as a familiar friend of lis las said, not less tlan two 
hours every day in tie secret disclarge of tlis import- 
ant duty ; and so constantly did le appear to be lifting 
up lis soul to God, towards tie close of lis life, when- 
ever te was alone, tlat one of lis little grandclildren, 
wlo lad closely observed lim, said once to a female 

friend: "Why, Miss , grandpa prays seventeen 

times a day !" 

Tie general claracter of Dr. Livingston, as given in 
tie foregoing remarks, is amply sustained by tie testi- 
mony of lis contemporaries of different denominations. 
Some of tlese are subjoined. 

Tie following is extracted from a letter of tie Eev. 
Eobert Forrest, of tie Associate Eeformed Clurcl. 

" My acquaintance witl Dr. L. was cliefly confined 
to five years, from 1804 till 1809, wlen residing cliefly 
in lis neiglborlood. I lad frequent opportunities of 
enjoying Lis society. * * As a tleologian, lis great 
forte lay in tlat wlicl was systematical and practical. 
He lad studied, witl tie utmost diligence, tie writings 
of tlose distinguisled men wlo reflected so mucl 
lonor upon Holland and Geneva during tie seven- 
teentl and tie beginning of tie eiglteentl centuries. 
It did not appear to me tlat Dr. L.'s talents qualified 
lim to lave been a successful controvertist ; but in tie 
faculty of illustrating tie Clristian system, and in ex- 
libiting its spiritual and moral tendencies, for tie in- 
struction of tleological students or a Clristian congre- 
gation, le certainly lad few, if any, superiors among 
lis contemporaries. In tie devotional manner in wlicl 
lie illustrated tie system of divinity, and tie interest 



332 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



which lie never failed to excite, lie certainly far ex- 
celled (judging from their writings) the divines of the 
Church of Holland. It appeared to me that Dr. L. 
had a very respectable acquaintance with the original 
languages of Scripture, as well as with history and 
chronology." 

The late venerable Dr. Ashbel Green, of Philadel- 
phia, in his letter, thus expressed himself: 

"I had occasional intercourse with the late venera- 
ble and reverend Doctor Livingston, for more than 
thirty years. Yet this intercourse was not frequent ; 
and I have often expressed regret that I never had an 
opportunity to hear him deliver a sermon, or perform 
any public religious service. But I knew enough of 
him, not only from his public character, and the testi- 
mony of some of his pupils, and other intimate friends, 
but from personal observation, attentively made in a 
number of most gratifying interviews, to esteem him 
as one of the holiest of men and most erudite divines 
of the age in which he lived. His fund of theological 
knowledge was unusually great, and his method of 
communicating it, even in common conversation, pecu- 
liarly happy and pleasing. There was, in his inter- 
course with his friends, a sustained dignity of demeanor, 
united with courteous, affectionate, and even familiar 
manner, such as I think I have never seen, in the same 
degree, in any other individual ; and these qualities of 
the accomplished gentleman received in him their 
highest charm, from a savor of genuine Christian piety, 
which seemed to accompany all that he said or did. I 



HIS GENERAL CHARACTER. 



838 



seldom left his presence -without finding that I had ac- 
quired some useful knowledge, and a stronger desire to 
make improvement in the Christian life. Such is, truly, 
my recollection and estimate of the great and good 
man whose biography, I am glad to hear, is to be given 
to the public." 

The following is from the Eev. Jacob J. Janeway, 
D.D., the late Professor of Didactic and Polemic Theo- 
logy, in the "Western Theological Seminary of the Pres- 
byterian Church : 

" The name of the Eev. Dr. John H. Livingston 
I shall ever hold in affectionate and grateful remem- 
brance. It was my happiness to sit under his instruc- 
tion from my early years of boyhood till I received my 
licensure to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ. 

li No one could look at him without admiring the 
nobleness of his person. His presence was very com- 
manding, calculated to impress on the mind of behold- 
ers a degree of reverence. His manners were polished 
and courtly. He was a real gentleman, as well as a 
Christian divine. In his later years, when age had im- 
parted additional dignity to him, his appearance was 
that of a venerable patriarch. He was very affection- 
ate to his friends. In my last interview with him at 
his residence, a short time before his death, he, in con- 
sequence of an incorrect view of my conduct, supposed 
he had reason to complain of inattention to his wishes, 
in regard to a matter that interested his feelings. Hav- 
ing administered a reproof before I had opportunity to 
explain, he subjoined: 1 But I love you still/ This was 



334 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



one of the last expressions of affectionate regard which 
it had been my happiness and honor often to' receive 
from him. 

" His colloquial powers were remarkable. He used 
them not for the purpose of attracting admiration, but 
in doing good. They, as well as all his intellectual 
faculties, were consecrated to the glory of his Master. 
Possessing, in consequence of such a gift, a peculiar 
facility in addressing persons on the subject of religion, 
and giving to conversation a pious turn, he did not fail to 
embrace every suitable opportunity for its best exercise. 
While pursuing in Holland his preparatory studies for 
the ministry, his attention was one day attracted by a 
young man in the company in which he was dining. 
After dinner, he arose from his seat, and tapping the 
youth on the shoulder, invited him to walk with him 
in the garden. He drew his attention to the great sub- 
ject of his religion, and endeavored to awaken his con- 
science. The conversation was blessed : the young 
man became pious ; and, like another Watts, he filled 
the country with psalms and hymns in praise of Grod. 

Dr. L. was eminently pious and devout. He lived 
near to the throne of grace. His gift in prayer was 
great. He used a holy familiarity with God. He 
drew nigh to the mercy-seat with reverence ; but he 
pleaded with the freedom and confidence which a child 
uses with a parent whom he reveres and loves. He 
once remarked, that the prayers of an advanced 
Christian are distinguished, not by going over the lofty 
titles of Jehovah, but by using the tender appellation of 
'Father.' The encomium passed on one who was 
translated to heaven without being subject to the 



HIS GENERAL CHARACTER. 



835 



pains of death, might truly be applied to him : 6 He 
walked with G-od.' Our venerable father was not, like 
the patriarch, translated bodily to heaven, yet the 
separation of his soul from his body was so easy, that 
he appears to have been exempted from the pains of 
dissolving nature. He fell asleep in Jesus. 

"Among the preachers of his day, Dr. L, held a dis- 
tinguished rank. His discourses were at once doc- 
trinal and practical, instructive and experimental, 
pungent and consoling. So familiar was he with 
divine truth, that he could preach in a profitable man- 
ner with little or no preparation. On one occasion, I 
heard him deliver, in the morning of the Sabbath, an 
excellent discourse on the providence of God ; and 
afterwards he told me he had selected his text while 
eating his breakfast, and said : 1 These thoughts have 
passed through my mind an hundred times.' Expe- 
rienced Christians were particularly attracted to his 
ministry, because he was able, from the rich treasury 
of his own Christian experience of divine things, and 
intimate acquaintance with personal religion, to bring 
forth in all his discourses something for their edifica- 
tion. 

"It may not be generally known to those who can 
recollect the deep base tones of his voice, that they 
were originally very different. He once told me, that 
his voice resembled that of the late venerable Doctor 
Eodgers : it was treble in a high degree, and in utter- 
ance required a painful exertion. He felt the necessity 
of changing it, and was induced to attempt it by the 
following circumstances: 'I was,' said he 1 while in 
Holland, amusing myself one day with playing on a 



886 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



violin. I was struck in observing tlie distance to 
which the sound seemed to be conveyed, when the 
base chord was touched. I tried it again, and from 
that moment determined to change my voice. He suc- 
ceeded. 

" Soon after his return from Holland, Dr. L. was 
appointed to the office of Professor of Theology in the 
Eeformed Dutch Church. For the duties of this office, 
when I had the advantage of attending his lectures, he 
was eminently qualified, and second to no man in this 
country. He was learned and extensively read in 
theological books, especially those written in the 
Dutch and Latin languages. With the Greek and 
Hebrew he was acquainted ; and so familiar with the 
Latin, that as he once informed me, while in Holland 
pursuing his studies, he used to dream in that lan- 
guage. At the time I prosecuted my preparatory 
studies, the professor retained his pastoral relation to 
the collegiate churches in New- York ; and yet, incum- 
bered as he was with ministerial duty, he delivered 
during six months in the year, three lectures a week, 
and attended to the compositions of his students. His 
lectures were not written ; and during the delivery of 
them, he indulged us with the privilege of interrupting 
him by proposing questions that occurred at the 
moment to our minds. Such interruptions occasioned 
no embarrassment to him. He kindly answered the 
inquiries, and then proceeded with his lecture. After 
his removal to New-Brunswick, and his entire devotion 
to the duties of his professorship, I can not doubt that 
his lectures were much improved, and that his pupils 
enjoyed superior advantages. 



HIS GENERAL CHARACTER. 



337 



" Strong attachment to teachers may render us par- 
tial to them, But much as I revere the memory of 
my late venerable preceptor in theology, I think I 
have written nothing but the truth ; and when I add, 
that he was a great and a good man. to whom the Dutch 
EefoiTQed Church is much indebted, I utter an eco- 
mium to which hundreds who knew Doctor Livingston, 
will cordially subjoin their testimony. 

k - 1 wish I could pay a better tribute of praise to the 
talents, the worth, the excellence and piety of one 
whose memory will always be dear to me. Such as it 
is, I submit it to your discretion, to be used in any 
way you please, for the honor of that venerable man, 
who deserves to be honored, and who, doubtless, has 
received from his Lord and Master an honor far supe- 
rior to any that mortals can record" 

The communication from the pen of the late Eev. 
Dr. Miller, Professor of Ecclesiastical History and 
Church Government in the Theological Seminary at 
Princeton, X. J., is in these words : 

" Eev. axd Dear Sir : In attemjDting to comply 
with your request, that I would communicate to you 
mv impression of the character of the late truly excel- 
lent and venerable Professor Livingston, I experience 
mingled feelings of pleasure and embarrassment. Of 
pleasure, because I can never call to my recollection 
the image of that invaluable man and divine, without 
rejoicing that I ever knew him ; and because I consid- 
er it as a privilege to be favored with an opportunity of 
making the humblest contribution towards embalming 



338 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENKY LIVINGSTON". 



his memory. Of embarmssment, because it is difficult to 
divest myself of the feeling, that for one so much his 
junior in age and standing, to appear as a witness of 
his worth, will be thought by some liable to the charge 
of presumption or vanity. Yet, as you call upon me, 
I will speak. And as I belong to a different eccle- 
siastical denomination from that with which he was 
connected, and as I never owed him any other obliga- 
tions than those which his personal excellence, and the 
pleasure and instruction which I frequently derived 
from his conversation, imposed, my testimony may, 
perhaps, be regarded as disinterested and impartial." 

"My acquaintance with Dr. Livingston began when 
he was far advanced in life, and when I was, I had al- 
most said, in my clerical boyhood. On my first visit 
to New- York, in 1792, my friend and my father's 
friend, and soon afterwards my colleague, the Kev. Dr. 
Kodgers, (whose name I can never mention without 
associating with it some epithet of honor, and some 
emotion of filial affection,) introduced me to him as one 
whose acquaintance and friendship he deemed pecu- 
liarly worth cultivating. At my first interview with 
him, I was struck with his venerable and commanding 
figure ; his truly gentlemanly deportment ; his conde- 
scending kindness to the young and inexperienced ; his 
instructive conversation ; his unusual familiarity with 
every thing relating to biblical and theological in- 
quiries ; his deep spirituality ; and his evident disposi- 
tion to encourage youthful candidates for the sacred of- 
fice. And, although there was something in his man- 
ners which, at that time, impressed me rather unplea- 
santly, as characterized by a courtliness approaching 



HIS GENERAL CHARACTER. 



839 



to the pomp of formality, yet the disagreeable impres- 
sion fcom this source became less and less, as my ac- 
quaintance with him became more intimate ; until it 
was, at length, forgotten amidst the predominant influ- 
ence of his varied and rich excellence. From that 
time until his death, I continued to seek and enjoy 
much intercourse with him ; and was called to act with 
him on a variety of interesting occasions, and, to the 
last, I am constrained to say, with a growing convic- 
tion of the value of his character, both as a friend and 
as a minister of Christ. 

" The characteristic of this venerable man which 
most deeply impressed me at my first acquaintance 
with him, and which continued to deepen its impres- 
sion on me, up to my last interview with him, was his 
ardent, habitual piety. I know not that I ever met 
with a man whose daily and hourly conversation indi- 
cated a mind more unremittingly devout, or more 
strongly marked with the exercises of the deeply ex- 
perimental Christian. His manner, indeed, of conduct- 
ing conversation on practical religion, was his own, and 
would not have set well on many other men. Yet, I 
think, I never withdrew from his company, without 
carrying with me the impression that I had been con- 
versing with a man who walked more by faith, who 
was favored with a larger measure of the assurance of 
hope, and who enjoyed more intimate communion 
with God, than most even of those who are deemed 
fervently pious. So far as I had an opportunity of ob- 
serving, this characteristic of my friend appeared abroad 
and at home, in the house and by the way, in sitting 
down and in rising up, with a constancy and promi- 

i 



340 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



nence which, could not fail to convince every one that 
it was the inwrought habit of his mind. 

" As a mature and accomplished theologian, Dr. Liv- 
ingston was greatly and justly distinguished. Of his 
eminent advantages for study in foreign universities, he 
had richly availed himself. And I have seldom seen 
a divine who appeared more 4 at home' in every spe- 
cies of theological and biblical discussion which could 
be started in his presence. I have witnessed instances 
of this, when it was manifest that the discussion was 
altogether unexpected to him, and when it was impos- 
sible he should have made any preparation for it, 
which, with all my previous respect for his attain- 
ments, greatly surprised me. It sometimes appeared 
to me, indeed, that he had not been so careful to seek 
an intimate acquaintance with the later theological 
writers and biblical critics, as his early habits of dili- 
gent and inquisitive study might have led one to anti- 
cipate. But with the best English and Dutch, and es- 
pecially with the best Latin writers on theology, both 
systematic a,nd expository, who occupied the attention 
of theological inquirers at the date of his studies in 
* # . * Utrecht, he had a depth and familiarity of ac- 
quaintance truly uncommon. It was, indeed, his 
opinion, that no one can be entitled to the character of 
a theologian, without being in some good degree fami- 
liar with the old systematic and topical writers of the 
Eeformed Churches, who flourished on the continent 
of Europe in the sixteenth, seventeenth, and beginning 
of the eighteenth centuries. He thought there was an 
extent of learning, and a vigor, depth, and complete- 
ness of discussion in their works so remarkable that no 



HIS GEHERAL CHAKACTEE. 



341 



man ought to consider himself as having learned the 
substance of all that can be said for or against any given 
point in polemic theology, who is ignorant of what 
those distinguished men have written. I was never so 
happy as to hear or to read any of the lectures de- 
livered by Dr. Livingston from his official chair. But 
the unvarying testimony of those who had enjoyed the 
privilege, was not only decisively, but very strongly in 
favor of them, as manifesting uncommon accuracy and 
maturity of theological knowledge. If, as I have often 
understood, they did not abound so much in references 
to the works and opinions of different divines as might 
have been gratifying to some inquisitive listeners, they 
indicated so much discrimination, judgment, and clear- 
ness, as to convince every hearer that he had read ex- 
tensively and thought much, and was well qualified to 
instruct on every subject which he undertook to eluci- 
date. 

" As a preacher, our venerable departed friend de- 
servedly enjoyed a high reputation. He seldom, or 
never, I believe, wrote his sermons fully out ; and very 
often, more especially towards the close of life, preached 
without writing at all. Hence he was by no means re- 
markable for that terse, polished, rhetorical style of ser- 
monizing in which some distinguished preachers have 
succeeded so admirably. The great excellence of his 
preaching consisted rather in the solidity and excel- 
lence of the matter than in the refinement of the man- 
ner. He was generally diffuse, and sometimes circuit- 
ous in his expositions and illustrations ; but generally 
rich in thought ; always solemn and experimental ; 
sometimes in a high degree powerful ; and seldom 



342 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



failed to keep up, and to reward to the last, the atten- 
tion of all classes of his hearers, especially of the more 
deeply pious. I have more than once heard him la- 
ment, that while so many preachers were well fitted to 
become instruments of awakening, convincing, and 
converting the impenitent., so few were well qualified 
to build up believers. He considered the gifts and 
graces peculiarly adapted to this department of minis- 
terial work are comparatively rare, but inestimably 
precious. And although he did not claim these quali- 
fications for himself, yet, if I mistake not, he was re- 
garded by others as possessing them in a remarkable 
degree, and as more strikingly adapted to build up 
the people of God in knowledge, holiness, and comfort, 
than to alarm the careless. His delivery in the pulpit 
always struck me as peculiar. There was a vivacity 
and a force about it, even in very advanced life, not 
often witnessed in the youngest preachers. To some, 
indeed, the amount of his gesture appeared to be excess- 
ive. But after hearing him a few times, it became so 
perfectly manifest that it was all natural to him, that it 
ceased to impress otherwise than agreeably. 

"This excellent man was a great enemy to metaphy- 
sical and philosophical preaching, and often remarked, 
that if men even became real Christians under such 
preaching, they walked in trammels, and never seemed 
to enjoy the riches and simplicity of the grace which is 
in Christ. He, therefore, seldom employed much of 
human argument in his discourses. They consisted, 
almost exclusively, of plain, simple Bible truth, in 
Bible language. And he seemed, especially towards the 
close of life, to have a conviction, every day increasing 



HIS GENERAL CHARACTER. 



343 



in depth and weight, that this method of preaching the 
Gospel is the only one which promises to revive pure 
and undefiled religion, or to do much good to the souls 
of men. To adopt this conclusion, and to act upon it, 
has ever been, I believe, the final result of the most 
enlightened wisdom, and the richest experience of the 
best ministers the Christian Church has ever seen. 

" The native powers of Dr. Livingston's mind were 
clear, orderly, solid and vigorous ; rather adapted to in- 
vestigation and instruction than to dazzle or to astonish. 
In his physical temperament, if I mistake not, he was 
cautious and timid rather than bold. This feature in his 
character had, perhaps, an important influence on his 
whole history. It prevented his appearing more fre- 
quently before the public as an author, for which his 
few printed works show him to have been well qualified. 
His sermon before the New- York Missionary Society is 
one of the few which will be inquired for long after the 
occasion which gave it birth has been forgotten. And 
his volume on the marriage of a deceased wife's sister, 
which espouses the side of this question commonly taken 
by the majority of the orthodox, undoubtedly does 
honor both to the head and the heart of the writer. The 
natural temperament, above alluded to also, I have no 
doubt, sometimes interfered with that decision and enter- 
prise which are so important to the highest success of a 
minister of the Gospel. 

" Great decision and enterprise of character in an 
ecclesiastic, when guided by ambition, are, no doubt, 
equally criminal and mischievous ; but when guided 
by Christian benevolence and disinterested zeal, lead to 
the happiest results. Eminent as the usefulness of this 



344 MEM0IK OF JOHN HENKY LIVINGSTON. 



great and good man was, it would probably have been 
still more eminent, had lie possessed a larger measure 
of those qualities which fit their possessor to venture 
on difficult undertakings, and to encounter the most 
formidable opposition with untiring activity, and with 
calm fixedness of purpose. He was much better adapted 
to shine as the enlightened,* pious, dignified and revered 
head of a tranquil and flourishing institution, than to 
cope with contentious spirits, to harmonize jarring ele- 
ments, to wield the boisterous passions, and conciliate 
the conflicting plans of ardent partisans. Melancthon 
was probably as pious as Lnther, and had, in some 
respects, quite as much talent and more learning. But 
he had less decision of character, less power over the 
minds of men, and less of that peculiar faculty which 
appears to so much advantage in composing and uniting 
heterogeneous materials. For Luther's mode of serv- 
ing the Church, Dr. Livingston was not so peculiarly 
adapted as many men of inferior standing. His appro- 
priate line was that which the great Head assigned to 
him — to train her rising ministry, and by his learning, 
his fervent piety, his Christian dignity, his prudence, 
and his retiring holy example, to prepare men to be 
heralds of that kingdom which is 1 righteousness, and 
peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost/ 

"He was a great lover of peace; and was ever found 
the patron of peaceful measures, as far as this course 
could possibly be pursued without the abandonment of 
truth. To this, as I have already hinted, he was im- 
pelled by temperament as well as by principle. As he 
was not well qualified himself 'to ride in the whirlwind, 
and direct the storm/ so he regretted to find the spirit 



HIS GENERAL CHAEACTEE. 



345 



of controversy, or of theological or ecclesiastical innova- 
tion, reigning in any of his pupils, and never failed, as 
far as possible, to repress it. He never appeared to me 
to have the least tincture of that spirit which has ship- 
wrecked the faith and usefulness of many an ingenious 
minister, and inflicted many a severe wound on the 
peace of the Church. I mean the spirit of fondness for 
novelties in doctrine or practice — an ambition to be hailed 
as the author of some original scheme. No man, per- 
haps, of his talent and learning, ever loved more to 
'inquire for the good old way,' and to 'walk in the foot- 
steps of the flock.' 

" The social and domestic character of our departed 
father was peculiarly exemplary. Indeed, in his mode 
of discharging all the social and relative duties of 
life, there was a mixture of the tenderness and loftiness 
of Christian feeling and Christian principle, truly strik- 
ing. In the shortest interview of friendship, business, 
or ceremony, as well as in the most common offices of 
domestic affection, you plainly saw that you were in 
the presence of a man who had seen much of the world, 
whose feelings were habitully benevolent, and in whose 
bosom the Christian character was predominant in every 
thing. 

"In fine, Dr. Livingston was one of a class of minis- 
ters who have now nearly passed away. They were 
emphatically of the ' Old School.' In using this ex- 
pression, I have no reference to any particular doctrines 
of theology; though he himself often adverted with 
pleasure to this sense of the phrase, as applicable to his 
creed and preaching. But I refer to a certain style of 
deportment and of character, which, if I mistake not, 

15* 



848 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



was far more common forty or fifty years ago, than at 
the present day. The ministers alluded to, with end- 
less diversity in other respects, were remarkable for 
that pious gravity, dignity, and urbanity which evinced 
that, in all situations and companies, they were mind- 
ful of their high calling, and under the influence of that 
wisdom, prudence and spirituality which are from 
above. They were no sti angers to cheerfulness, and 
were often even facetious and sportive. But their sport- 
iveness was ever marked by Christian dignity and deli- 
cacy. It was apparent that they respected themselves, 
and respected their office. They did not let themselves 
down in company by undue familiarity, by levity, by 
coarse or unseasonable anecdotes, or by a rude invasion 
of the feelings of others. And you never departed 
from the company of one of them, without being made 
to feel that you had been conversing with a man of 
Grod, who lived and acted for another and a better world. 
To this class of ministers belonged our late venerable 
friend. Wherever he appeared, he threw around him 
an influence which repressed frivolity, impiety, and 
profaneness. This he effected, not by an air of gri- 
mace or sanctimoniousness, not by moroseness or aus- 
terity ; but by that grave, elevated, apostolical style of 
manners which all saw and felt, and before which 
profligacy, and even brutality, were awed into tempo- 
rary decorum. Of this I have known instances, in his 
case, which if I were able to describe them with a 
graphic spirit, approaching to the manner in which 
they addressed themselves to the eye and ear when 
they occurred, would greatly instruct as well as amuse. 
But I can not thus describe them, and shall not attempt 



HIS GENERAL CHARACTER. 



347 



it. There is so rauch in looks, tones, and gestures, 
which can not be expressed in words, and which yet is 
deeply powerful, that you will readily understand why 
I shrink from the task. 

il Such impressive examples are extremely rare. At 
least they are rare among that portion of the Christian 
ministry in the United States with which I am best 
acquainted. I do not doubt, indeed, that we have 
among the present race of evangelical ministers, as 
large an average amount of piety, zeal, and unwearied 
labor as among any that ever adorned our country. 
But unless I am deceived, as ministers have multiplied 
in our country, that tone of official gravity and dignity 
which I have attempted to describe, which flows from 
a happy mixture of habitual seriousness, prudence, be- 
nevolence, and the delicate perception of what is proper, 
and which is so much adapted to make both a pleasing 
and a useful popular impression, has been perceptibly 
reduced 

" For the reasons of this fact, if it be a fact, I shall 
not, at present, attempt to inquire ; yet I can neither 
doubt that it is so nor forbear to lament it. When, 
therefore, I received the intelligence that our venerable 
friend was no more, amidst the many tender and inter- 
esting emotions which filled my mind, I could not help 
regretting that one of the most truly respectable and 
commanding examples of the style of character to which 
I have referred, had departed from the view of the 
American Church. 

" But I am carried to an improper length, by my 
affection and veneration for this excellent man, and 
must stop. May that Grod whose he was, and whom 



848 MEMOIR OF JOHN HENRY LIVINGSTON. 



he so faithfully served, preside over your undertaking, 
and enable you to form a memorial of his useful life 
which shall be a rich blessing to the Church of Christ ! 
Nor can I form a more friendly wish for the Church, 
or for our beloved country, than that our theological 
seminaries may send forth, from year to year, many a 
herald of salvation, resembling him whose history you 
are charged with compiling." 

" If the foregoing hasty sketch should, in the least 
degree, subserve your purpose, it will give me cordial 
gratification. I regard it as equally an honor and a 
pleasure, to record this testimony in favor of an emi- 
nently useful servant of Christ, whom I knew well, 
whose memory I love to cherish, and with whom 1 
hope, by the grace of God, to be for ever united in a 
better world. 

u 1 am, my dear sir, 

" With very great regard, 

" Your friend and brother in the Gospel, 
" Samuel Miller. 

u Princeton, Nov. 15, 1828." 

These ample testimonies, which might easily have been 
increased, indicate the exalted reputation of Dr. Liv- 
ingston. By the favor of God he held on the even tenor 
of his way to the very last, without a single blot upon 
his good name. During his long life he was accompa- 
nied by the love of his friends, the reverence of his 
pupils, the confidence of the Church, and the general 
esteem of the community. Having served his genera- 
tion by the will of God, he at length fell on sleep ; but 
precious memorials of his wisdom, piety, and zeal re- 



HIS GENERAL CHARACTER. 



349 



main behind. The remembrance of John H. Living- 
ston, of Ms -virtues, his talents, bis services, and bis 
example, will always be gratefully cberisbed. Grod, in 
whose hand alone it is to make great, raised him up and 
qualified him for the singularly useful, responsible, and 
honorable part which he acted in his day. And the 
Church in whose communion he lived and died, and to 
whom he was made such a benefactor and ornament, 
will give the glory where it belongs, and say : " Now, 

THEREFORE, OUR GrOD, WE THANK THEE AND PRAISE 
THY GLORIOUS NAME." 



APPENDIX. 



APPENDIX A. 

THE KEY. JOHN LIVINGSTON OF ANCEUM. 

The following brief sketch of this godly man's life is given for 
the most part in his own language. He was born in Monyabroch, 
in Stirlingshire, June 21, 1603. 

"I observed," he says, in a narrative of his life, written by himself, 
"the Lord's great goodness, that I was born of such parents, who taught 
me somewhat of God, so soon as I was capable to understand any thing; 
I had great cares about my salvation, when I was but yet very young ; 
I had the advantage of the acquaintance and example of many gracious 
Christians, who used to resort to my father's house, especially at com- 
munion occasions. I do not remember the time or means particularly, 
whereby the Lord at first wrought upon my heart. TVhen I was but 
very young, I would sometimes pray with some feeling, and read the 
word with delight ; but thereafter did often intermit any such exercise ; 
I would have some challenges and begin, and again intermit. I re- 
member the first time that ever I communicated at the Lord's table was 
in Stirling, when I was at school, where sitting at the table, and Mr. 
Patrick Simpson exhorting before the distribution, there came such a 
trembling upon me that ah my body shook, yet thereafter the fear and 
trembling departed, and I got some comfort and assurance. I had no 
inclination to the ministry, till a year or more after I had passed my 
course in the college ; and that, upon this occasion, I had a bent desiro 
to give myself to the knowledge and practice of medicine, and was very 
earnest to go to France for that purpose, and propounded it to my father 



852 



APPENDIX. 



that I might obtain his consent, but he refused tho same. Also, about 
the same time, my father having before purchased some land in the 
parish of Monyabroch, the rights whereof were taken in my name, and 
that land by ill neighbors being in a manner laid waste, and Sir Wil- 
liam Livingston of Kilsyth, one of tho lords of session, being very desir- 
ous to buy that land, that he might build a burgh of barony upon it at 
Burnside, my father propounded that I should go and dwell on that land 
and marry: but rinding that that course would divert me from all study 
of learning, I refused that offer, and rather agreed to the selling of it, 
although I was not yet major to ratify the sale. Now, being in those 
straits, I resolved that I would spend a day alone before God, and 
knowing of a secret cave on the south side of Mouse water, a little 
above the house of Jervis wood, over against Cleghorn wood, I went 
thither, and after many to's and fro's, and much confusion, and fear 
about the state of my soul, I thought it was made out unto me, that I 
behooved to preach Christ Jesus, which if I did not, I should have no 
assurance of salvation. Upon this, I laid aside all thoughts of France, 
and medicine, and land, and betook me to the study of divinity." 

He preached his first sermon January 2, 1625, when about the 
age of twenty-two. The succeeding five years were spent partly 
in the diligent pursuit of his theological studies at home, in his 
father's house, and partly in visiting different places, preaching 
occasionally, and cultivating an acquaintance with some of the 
most eminent ministers and professors of the Church of Scotland. 
In the course of this period, he received a number of calls from 
vacant congregations ; but the opposition of those in power, and 
other difficulties that occurred, prevented his assuming the pas- 
toral office. 

One of these occasional services, the memory of which, after 
the lapse of two centuries, is still fragrant in the Church of God, 
occurred on the 21st of June, 1630. 

The occasion was one of more than ordinary interest and 
solemnity ; the circumstances under which he was constrained 
to preach were somewhat remarkable ; and the happy fruits of 
the spirit which accompanied and followed the sermon were truly 
astonishing. Rarely has any single sermon been attended with 
such memorable and glorious results, since the days of the 
apostles. 



EEV. JOHK LIVINGSTON OF ANCKUM. 353 



Gillies, in his Historial Collections, gives the following account 
of the occasion and the sermon : 

"As the kirk of Shotts lies on the road from the west to Edinburgh, 
and is at a good distance from any convenient place of entertainment, 
some ladies of rank, who had occasion to pass that way, met, at different 
times, with civilities from the minister at his house, which was then 
situated where the public inn is now. Particularly once, when through 
some misfortune befalling their coach or chariot, they were obliged to 
pass a night in the minister's house ; they observed, that besides its in- 
commodious situation, it much needed to be repaired. They, therefore, 
used their interest to get a more convenient house built for the minister 
in another place. 

" After receiving so substantial favors, the minister waited on the 
ladies, and expressed his desire to know if any thing was in his power, 
that might testify his gratitude to them. They answered it would be 
very obliging to them, if he would invite, to assist at his communion, 
certain ministers whom they named, who were eminently instrumental 
in promoting practical religion. The report of this spreading far and 
near, multitudes of persons of different ranks attended there, so that for 
several days before the sacrament there was much time spent in social 
prayer. • 

"It was not usual, it seems, in those times, to have any sermon on 
the Monday after dispensing the Lord's supper. But God had given so 
much of his gracious presence, and afforded his people so much com- 
munion with himself; on the foregoing days of that solemnity, that they 
knew not how to part without thanksgiving and praise. There had 
been, as was said before, a vast confluence of choice Christians, with 
several eminent ministers, from almost all the corners of the land, that 
had been many of them there together, for several days before the sacra- 
ment, hearing sermon, and joining together in larger or lesser companies, 
in prayer, praise, and spiritual conferences. While their hearts were 
warm with the love of God, some expressing their desire of a sermon 
on the Monday were joined by others, 3nd in a little the desire became 
very general. 

" Mr. John Livingston, chaplain to the Countess of Wigtown, (at that 
time, only a preacher, not an ordained minister, and about twenty-seven 
years of age,) was, with very much ado, prevailed on to think of giving 
the sermon. He had spent the night before in prayer and conference ; 
but when he was alone in the fields, about eight or nine in the morning, 



354 



APPENDIX. 



there came such a misgiving of heart upon him, under a sense of un- 
worthiness and unfitness to speak before so many aged and worthy 
ministers, and so many eminent and experienced Christians, that he 
was thinking to have stolen quite away, and was actually gone away 
to some distance ; but when just about to lose sight of the kirk of 
Shotts, these words, ' Was lever a barren wilderness, or a land of darkness V 
were brought into his heart with such an overcoming power as con- 
strained him to think it his duty to return and comply with the call to 
preach ; which he accordingly did with good assistance, for about an 
hour and a half, on the points he had meditated from that text, Ezek. 
34: 25, 26, Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall 
be clean : from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse 
you. A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put 
within you, and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and 
I will give you an heart of flesh." 

l: As he was about to close, a heavy shower coming suddenly 
on, which made the people hastily take to their cloaks and mantles, he 
began to speak to the following purpose : 1 If a few drops of rain from 
the clouds so discomposed them, how discomposed they would be, how 
full of horror and despair, if God should deal with them as they deserv- 
ed ; and thus he will deal with all the finally impenitent. That God 
might justly rain fire and brimstone upon them, as upon Sodom and 
Gomorrah, and the other cities of the plain ; that the Son of God, by 
tabernacling in our nature and obeying and suffering in it, is the only 
refuge and covert from the storm of divine wrath due to us for sin ; 
that his merits and mediation are the alone screen from that storm, and 
none but penitent believers shall have the benefit of that shelter.' In 
these, or some expressions to this purpose, and many others, he was led 
on about an hour's time) after he had done with what he had premedi- 
tated) in a strain of exhortation and warning, with great enlargement 
and melting of heart." 

The same historian goes on to state some facts, showing the 
powerful and permanent effects of this sermon upon many of the 
hearers ; but instead of extending the quotation, it will not be 
amiss to present a brief extract from the work of another, in con- 
firmation of the above account, especially as it contains a more 
general view of the effects produced. Mr. Fleming, an author of 
unquestioned veracity, in his work upon the fulfilling of the 
Scriptures, says: 



KEV. JOHN LIVINGSTON OF AETCKUM. 355 



"I must also mention that solemn commnnion at the kirk of Shotts, 
June 20, 1630. at which time there was so convincing an appearance of 
God, and down-ponring of the Spirit, even in an extraordinary way, that 
did follow the ordinances, especially that sermon of the Monday, June 
21, with a strange unusual motion on the hearers, who in a great multi- 
tude were there convened, of divers rank, that it was known, which I 
can speak on sure ground, near five hundred had at that time a dis- 
cernible change wrought on them, of whom most proved lively 
Christians afterwards. It was the sowing of a seed through Clyddisdale, 
so as many of the most eminent Christians in that country could date 
either their conversion, or some remarkable confirmation in their case, 
from that day ; and truly this was the more remarkable, that one, after 
much reluctance, by a special and unexpected providence, was called to 
preach that sermon on the Monday, which then was not usually prac- 
tised ; and that night before, by most of the Christians there, was spent 
in prayer, so that the Monday's work might be discerned as a convinc- 
ing return of prayer." 

Mr. Livingston says himself, in reference to this memorable oc- 
sion: 

" The only day in all my life wherein I found most of the presence of 
God in preaching, was on a Monday after the communion, preaching in 
the church-yard of Shotts, June 21, 1630. The night before I had been 
in company with some Christians, who spent the night in prayer and 
conference. "When I was alone in the fields, about eight or nine o'clock 
in the morning, before we were to go to sermon, there came such a 
misgiving of spirit upon me, considering my unworthiness and weakness 
and the multitude and expectation of the people, that I was consulting 
with myself to have stolen away somewhere, and declined that day's 
preaching, but that I thought I durst not so far distrust God; and so 
went to sermon, and got good assistance, about one hour and a half, 
upon the points which I had meditated on, Ezek, 34 : 25, 26. And in the 
end, offering to close with some words of exhortation, I was led on about 
an hour's time, in a strain of exhortation and warning, with such liberty 
and melting of heart, as I never had the like in public all my lifetime. 
Some little of the stamp remained on the Thursday after, when I 
preached in Kilmarnock, but the very Monday following, preaching in 
Irvine, I was so deserted, that the points I had meditated and written, 
and which I had fully in my memory, I was not, for my heart, able to 



356 



APPENDIX. 



get them pronounced ; so it pleased the Lord to counterbalance his 
dealings, and to hide pride from man. This so discouraged me, that I 
was resolved for some time not to preach, at least not in Irvine ; but 
Mr. David Dickson would not suffer me to go from hence, till I preached 
the next Sabbath, to get (as he expressed it) amends of the devil. I 
staid and preached with some tolerable freedom." 

Shortly after that signal blessing upon his labors, this eminent 
servant of Christ received and accepted a unamimous call from 
the church of Killinchie, in Ireland, where he was made, in some 
degree, useful to an ignorant but tractable people. And about 
this time, a similar extraordinary manifestation of divine power 
attended his preaching upon another Monday after communion, 
at Holywood, upon which occasion it is said that a much 
greater number were converted. Under these two famous ser- 
mons, indeed, it was calculated that the good work of the Spirit 
was either begun or revived in the hearts of no less than fifteen 
hundred persons. But he now became an object of bitter perse- 
cution : was proceeded against for non-conformity, and deposed. 
The effect of this arbitrary and cruel measure was, to induce him 
and a number of his friends to think seriously of emigrating to 
New-England. A vessel was built for the purpose ; and they 
actually set sail for America ; but encountering from the moment 
of their departure, violent adverse winds, and being driven back 
at last, after a lapse of nearly two months, to the port whence they 
had loosed, the design was altogether abandoned. In 1638, he 
settled in a place called Stranraer, in Scotland; and for ten 
years he exercised his ministry here with great comfort, and 
some measure of success. He had not been long in this place, 
before some of his parishioners expressed a wish to be present 
at his morning family exercises. To gratify them, as his house 
could not conveniently accommodate all who might desire to 
attend, he assembled them every morning in the church, by the 
ringing of the bell, and spent about half an hour with them in 
singing, expounding the word of God, and prayers. 

While he retained this interesting charge, he was several 
times sent by the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland to 
visit some vacant parishes in the north of Ireland. Each mis- 



KEY. JOHX LIYLS"GSTOX OF AXCKUtt. 357 



sionary tour occupied three months; and, "for the most 
part of all these three months," he says, " I preached every day 
once, and twice on the Sabbath ; the destitute parishes were 
many ; the hunger of the people was become great ; and the 
Lord was pleased to furnish otherwise than usually I was wont 
to get at home. I came ordinarily the night before to the place 
where I was to preach, and commonly lodged in some religious 
person's house, where we were often well refreshed at family exer- 
cise ; usually I desired no more before I went to bed, but to make 
sure the place of Scripture I was to preach on the next day. And 
rising in the morning, I had four or five hours myself alone, 
either in a chamber or in the fields ; after that we went to the 
church, and then dined, and then rode some five or six miles 
more or less, to another parish. 

From Stranraer he removed in 1648, to Ancrum, in Teviotdale. 
With the people of this place he continued a number of years, 
beloved and useful ; but the intolerant spirit of the time, which 
could brook no ministerial services not conformed to prelaticai 
rule, at length procured his banishment, with that of several 
other eminent ministers, from the kingdom of Great Britain. 

In April, 1663, he fled to Holland, and settled in Kotterdam. 
His wife and two of the children followed him towards the close 
of the year, but five children remained in Scotland. 

Having now considerable leisure, though he preached frequent- 
ly to the Scots' congregation in this city, he diligently cultivated 
the study of the Hebrew language, and attempted to prepare for 
publication a volume containing the original text of the Bible in- 
one column, and the several vulgar translations in another. The 
design was approved by Yoetius, Essenius, Nethenus, and Leusden ; 
and having spent much time in comparing Pagnin's version with 
the original text, and with other later translations, such as Mun- 
sters, Junius's, Diodati's, the English, but especially the Dutch, 
the latest and esteemed the most accurate translation, he sent 
his manuscripts to Dr. Luesden, in compliance with a request of 
that learned professor, expecting they would be printed and pub- 
lished in Utrecht. It is not known what became of the work ; but 
shortly after it was put out of his hands, he rested from his labors 
on earth, and entered into the joy of his Lord. He died August 



358 



APPENDIX. 



9, 1672, aged 69 years, having resided in Rotterdam a little 
over nine years. 

This man of God, the principal events of whose life have been 
thus rapidly traced, was, as before observed, the common ancestor 
of the Livingstons in this country. To be descended from a person 
of such piety, zeal and distinguished usefulness in the Church of 
God, is assuredly a greater honor than to inherit a princely name ; 
and the time will come when all men will so regard it — when the 
respect now paid to a connection with the wise, mighty, and 
noble of this world will be transferred to a kindred with those 
whom the Scriptures denominate the excellent of the eakth. 
Such a descent even at present is not wholly without its temporal 
blessings. A good man leaveth an inheritance to his children's 
children ; and a history of many of the descendants of Mr. Liv- 
ingston would afford a fine illustration of the truth of Solomon's 
declaration. In Smith's History of New- York, the following 
notice is taken of him and his family, as then known in this 
country : 

" Mr. John Livingston, one of the commissioners from Scotland to 
King Charles IL, while he was an exile at Breda. He was a clergy- 
man distinguished by his zeal and industry, and for his opposition to 
Episcopacy became so obnoxious, after the Restoration, to the English 
court, that he left Scotland, and took the pastoral charge of an English 
Presbyterian church in Rotterdam. His descendants are very numerous 
in this province, and the family in the first ranlc for their wealth, morals, 
and education. The original diary, in the hand- writing of their common 
ancestor, is still among them, and contains a history of his life." 

The work from which this quotation is made was published in 
1756 ; and up to this day, the family has maintained the same 
elevated station in society : the name of Livingston has been, 
generally speaking, associated with all that is respectable in cha- 
racter and honorably connected with the literature, jurisprudence, 
and politics of the State and the nation. 



REY. JACOBUS THEODORUS FRELINGHUYSEN. 359 



APPENDIX B. 

THE BEY. JACOBUS THEODORUS FRELINGHUYSEN. 

The following narrative is abridged from an interesting and 
instructive paper, entitled "The Hollanders in New-Jersey," 
read by the Rev. Dr. Messier, of Somerville, N. J., before the 
New-Jersey Historical Society, September, 12, 1850: 

Jacobus Theodoras Frelinghuysen was born in the year 2691, in 
"West-Friesland ; ordained at Embden, in East-Friesland, in the year 
1717. In the preface to one of his sermons, he says that he was not a 
Hollander by birth, but was induced to preach in the Netherlands lan- 
guage by the advice of his worthy instructor, the Rev. Otto Yerbrugge, 
late Professor of Theology and the Oriental Languages at Lingen, now 
[1733] settled at Groningen. The way in which he was led to come to 
America is thus related : A call for a minister from certain churches in 
New- Jersey was sent to the Classis of Amsterdam, and a pious minister, 
named Sicco Tyadde, took great interest in getting an evangelical man 
to accept this call. At the time when he was making inquiries, Mr- 
Frelinghuysen happened, while on a journey, to pass through the town 
where he lived, and to* spend the night at the house of one of his 
elders. Being invited, at the proper season, to conduct the worship of 
the family, he consented, and, after reading a portion of the Scriptures, 
gave a brief exposition, and concluded with prayer. The elder was so 
pleased with his remarks and his whole deportment that, in the morn- 
ing, he exacted of him a promise to make his house his home on his re- 
turn, and then hastening to his pastor, exclaimed : " I have found the 
man to go to America." In due time, Mr. F. returned, and after con- 
Bultation, agreed to accept the call. The matter appeared to him a 
distinct indication of the will of Providence, and he willingly forsook 



860 



APPENDIX. 



for ever his home and kindred, in order to carry the ordinances of the 
G-ospel to strangers in the wilderness. 

He arrived from Holland in the spring of 1720, and assumed the 
pastoral charge of the churches of Raritan, New-Brunswick. Six-Mile- 
Run, and North-Branch. His field of labor was large and by no means 
inviting. The population was sparse, the settlements many miles apart, 
the primeval forest -unbroken, the roads little'more than bridle-paths, the 
streams without bridges, and the people in the condition which might be 
expected after having been for thirty or forty years without churches, 
schools, or any of the established in3t:.tu r ions of religion. His place of resi- 
dence was about three miles west of New-Brunswick, from which, as a 
centre, he made excursions, preaching and catechising the youth, alter- 
nately in the different churches. Here the Rev. Gilbert Tennent, who, in 
1727, became pastor of the Presbyterian church at New-Brunswick, 
found him, and wrote, in a letter to the Rev. Mr. Prince, of Boston, that 
1 his labors were much blessed to the people of New-Brunswick and places 
adjacent, especially about the time of his coming among them. TThen I 
came there, which was about seven years after, I had the pleasure of 
seeing much of the fruits of his ministry ; divers of his hearers, with 
whom I had opportunity of conversing, appeared to be converted per- 
sons, by their soundness in principle, Christian experience, and pious 
practice ; and these persons declared that his ministrations were the 
means thereof. This, together with a kind letter which he sent me, 
respecting the necessity of dividing the word aright, and giving to every 
man his portion in due season, through the divine blessing, excited me 
to greater earnestness in ministerial labors.' Similar testimony is 
borne by Whitefield, who, in his journal of 1739, speaks of an extensive 
revival of religion as the effect of his labors in New-Brunswick and that 
vicinity. A full account of this revival can not be given, for the mate- 
rials have almost all perished. It certainly was very extensive and 
powerful. The results of it were long visible in the character of the 
people, and doubtless are even yet working for good. 

The most striking features of Mr. Frelinghuysen, as a preacher, were 
his evangelical spirit, the frequency with which he insisted on the ne- 
cessity of regeneration, and his vehement denunciations of formalism. 
On these points, many of his people were at variance with him, and 
angry controversies arose, which distracted the Church, and embittered 
his latter days. But he never quailed, although attacked in the civil 
courts, before the colonial authorities, through the press, and by com- 
plaint to the Classis of Amsterdam. He went straight forward in his 



KEY. JACOBUS THEODORUS FRELIXGHUYSEX. 861 



course, without regard to fear or favor, and in the end was triumph- 
antly sustained. He published, at various times, small volumes of ser- 
mons, nearly all of which have been collected and translated by the 
Rev. William Demarest, of Boundbrook, X. J., and will be published 
during the present year. They are eminently orthodox, spiritual, and 
pungent, and reflect great credit upon his memory as an able and faith- 
ful minister of Christ. The exact time of his death is not ascertained^ 
Lor is the place of his burial certainly known. 

His pure and fervent piety was eminently blessed in his family 
circle. His children were all Levites — five sons devoting themselves to 
the sacred office, and two daughters marrying ministers. Theodores, the 
eldest, was settled at Albany, X. Y., about the year 1746, where his min- 
istrations were very useful and acceptable. After some years, he made 
a visit to Holland, for the purpose of obtaining funds to establish a lite- 
rary and theological institution ; but on his return home, was lost at 
sea. The second, Joaxxes, who was distinguished for pulpit elo- 
quence, succeeded his father at Raritan, in August, 1750, but finished 
his earthly labors in September, 1754, being then in the 23th year of 
his age. The next two sons, Jacobus and Ferdesaxdes, were both 
carried off by small-pox, while at sea, on their return from Holland, in 
1753. The youngest, Henricus, was settled at Rochester, Ulster 
county, X. Y., in 1756 ; but in the course of little more than a twelve- 
month, fell a victim to the same disease which took away two of his 
brothers. EBs remains were interred under the church at Marbletown, 
where he had been ordained. All died in early life, and left no issue, ex- 
cept Joannes, whose son, Frederick, served as a colonel in the war of 
the Revolution, and afterwards represented Xew- Jersey in the Senate of 
the United States. He left three sons, of whom the only survivor is 
now the president of Rutgers College, the Hon. Theodore Frellxg- 
huysen. Of the daughters, one, Axna, was married to the Rev. "Wil- 
liam Jackson, loDg settled at Bergen ; the other, Margaret, became 
the wife of the Rev. Thomas Rometx, who resided first on Long-Island, 
and afterwards at ALinisink. Mrs. Romeyn died early, but left a son, 
Theodores Frelen'GHUYSEn Romeyx, who became a minister, and suc- 
ceeded the Rev. Dr. Hardenbergh, in the same charge at Raritan to 
which his grandfather and his uncle had successively ministered. He, 
however, although a young man of unusually fine promise, died in 
1785, within less than eighteen months from his installation. 



16 



362 



APPENDIX. 



APPENDIX 0. 

THE CIVIL SUIT ABOUT THE EIGHT OF VOTING, 1765. 

The annexed account of this trial is taken from a copy made and 
duly authenticated for the use of the Rev. Dr.Westerlo, of Albany, 
and his Consistory. Mr. Theodore Van Wyck, of New- York, the 
gentleman who procured the copy for Dr. W., observes in the let- 
ter which accompanied it, that the arguments or pleadings in the 
cause occupy no less than forty-eight pages, (folio,) written in a 
small hand. The counsel for the plaintiff were the king's at- 
torney, Mr. Duane and Mr. Kissam; and " the chief of their argu- 
ments was, that the members had a right to vote by" the "char- 
ter, and that, in depriving them of that privilege, the Consistory 
had forfeited their charter." The counsel for the defendants 
were William Smith, Whitehead Hicks, William Livingston, and 
Mr. Scott, whose "arguments run upon the Constitution of the 
Church, and the invariable way of choosing elders and deacons. 
They proved by several eminent authorities, that if even a people 
had had a right to elect officers by virtue of a charter, ****** 
by suffering such officers by themselves to elect others for a long 
time, that the said people had forfeited and lost their right of 
voting. They likewise proved, that in such a case the law sup- 
posed there might have been By-Laws made with consent of the 
people, to invest the election only in the corporation, which law 
might be lost or forgot ; but, in either case, the people, by not 
annually attending the election, lost their privilege." 



THE EIGHT OF VOTING. 



863 



Abstracts of the Trial between Abel Hardenbrook, plaintiff, in behalf 
of the Dutch party so called,) and the Elders and Deacons of the 
Reformed Protestant Dutch Church of the city of New- York, defend- 
ants, commenced upon the said Elders and Deacons refusing the other 
members of the said Church" a " vote for Church officers." 

" Supreme Court in the City of New-York:, 

''April Term, Friday, 26, 1765. 
" At eleven of the clock in the morning came on the trial of Abel 
Hardenbrook, plaintiff, against John Bogert, Esq, and others, defendants, 
when the following jury, out of the panel which was struck the 19th 
inst, appeared upon call, and were sworn to try the cause, namely : 

Samuel Yerplanck, Thomas "White, 

John Starr 3 , Cruger, John Shoals, 

David Clarkson, "William Bedlow, 

Robert G-riffen, John Provoost, Esq. 

Lawrence Kortright, Lewis Paintard, 

Beverly Robinson, "Walter Rutherford. 

u After a trial of twenty-one hours, in the course of which many evi- 
dences were examined, the judge gave the following charge," (omitted) 
<: to the jury, to bring in a special verdict upon matters of law, to be 
determined by solid argument before the couit, but recommended to 
find three matters of fact upon evidence, namely : 

; - 1st. That the plaintiff had made a lawful demand of his vote by 
Jacobus Stoutenburg. 

" 2d. That the majority of the members assembled on that day, ap- 
peared to have been on the side of the plaintiff to vote. 

;; 3d. That the minister of the Dutch Church had a vote in the elec- 
tion for elders and deacons. 

"All which the said jury brought in accordingly, as will appear by 
the following notes, which are exactly transcribed from a copy of Mr. 
Bangor, taken from the original verdict of the jury : 

" New- York Supreme Court. 
"Abel Hardenbrook against John ) mm of special ver dict. 
Bogert, jun., Esq., and others. ) 1 

" The jurors, upon their oath, on the trial of the issue aforesaid, do 
find: 



364 



APPENDIX. 



" 1st. That King William the Third, by his letters patent, under the 
great seal of the province of New-York, bearing date the 11th May, in 
the eighth year of his said Majesty's reign, in the year of our Lord 1696, 
did grant unto the ministers, elders, and deacons of the Reformed Pro- 
testant Dutch Church of the city of New- York — prout : 

" 2d. That the Lieutenant-Governor, the Council, and General Assem- 
bly of the province of New- York, by a certain act made and passed the 
12th of December, 1*753, entitled an act to enable the minister, elders, 
and deacons of the Reformed Protestant Dutch Church of the city of 
New- York, to sell and dispose of their lands, tenements, and heredita- 
ments, in the county of Westchester, commonly called and known by 
the name of the Manor of Pordham. and also for granting unto them 
some further liberties and privileges for the better management of their 
affairs, and the well ordering of their said church, did enact — prout : 

" 3d. That his late Majesty King George the Second, by his con- 
firmation under seal, dated 25th February, It 55, did confirm the said 
act — prout : 

"4th. That the defendants were the major part of the elders and 
deacons of the said church in the city of New-York, on the third 
Thursday of October, 1763, one of the days of election of elders and 
deacons appointed by the said charter, and so, being elders and dea- 
cons, on that day were assembled at the said church to proceed to an 
election of elders and deacons for the said church for the then ensuing 
year. 

"5th. That the plaintiff, on the said Thursday of October, 1763, and 
long before, was a member of the said church and corporation, duly 
admitted, and also a member in communion of the said Reformed Pro- 
testant Dutch Church, and an inhabitant of the said city of New- York ; 
and so being a member and inhabitant, did on the same day personally 
attend at the said church, before the election, nomination, or appoint- 
ment; did then and there demand and require of the defendants to 
permit him, the said plaintiff, to give his voice for electing elders and 
deacons for the said church for the ensuing year, to be chosen pursuant 
to the said charter. 

"6th. That the said defendants did then and there, upon such demand 
and requests so made, refuse to take, receive or allow the voice of the 
plaintiff to be given, and did then and there prevent, obstruct, and 
hinder the plaintiff from giving his vote at the said election, for the 
electing, nominating, or appointing the elders and deacons of the said 
church for the year ensuing, or any of them. 



THE RIGHT OF VOTING. 



865 



" 7 th. That the said defendants did then and there elect, nominate, 
and appoint elders and deacons of the said church for the year ensuing, 
the plaintiff being present at the said church, without taking the plain- 
tiff's vote in the said election, and without previously, or at any time 
that day, proposing or naming to the members or the plaintiff attending 
at the election, the persons nominated by the defendants for elders and 
deacons of the said church for the ensuing year. 

4i 8th. That of the members in communion of the said church, and in- 
habitants within the said city, then and there attending at the said 
church, the majority attended to give their voices as members for elect- 
ing the elders and deacons of the said church for the ensuing year." 
[The reason of this was, that the members, on the side of the Consistory, 
did not then attend in a body as they did the following year, to approve 
of the election.] 

" 9th. That the Dutch churches in Holland are governed by the 
rules established in the national Synod of Dort, held in 1613 and 1619. 

" 10th. That the said Synod of Dort, by the 22d article of the said 
ruies, did establish — prout : 

"llth. That the said Synod of Dort did at the same time establish 
the national rule or confession of faith, the 31st article whereof is — 
prout : 

"12th. That the usage of the Dutch churches in Holland respecting 
elections of elders and deacons has long been for the elders and deacons, 
and every minister present at their election, to elect their officers by the 
majority of their voices, without the vote of other members ; and not to 
propose the persons to be elected elders and deacons to the members of 
the churches respectively before, nor at the time of the election, nor 
until the Sunday next following such election, when it is the usage to 
publish their names to the respective congregations, and on the two 
next succeeding Sundays — each Sunday calling on the people to object 
against their being admitted and confirmed, if they have cause; and the 
usage also is, that if any good objection be made and supported, the 
ciders and deacons so objected to, are not admitted to the office ; but 
the Consistory judge of the validity of the objections, and if they con- 
ceive them sufficient, proceed to a new election. 

u 13th. That if no objections be made by the members, by the third 
Sunday afcer the elections, the elders and deacons so chosen are con- 
firmed in and admitted to their respective offices, and that they are not 
elders and deacons until such confirmation and admission. 



366 



APPENDIX. 



" 14th. That the usage and practice with regard to the proposing, 
confirmation, and admission; objecting against and setting aside of 
elders and deacons respectively, in the said Dutch Church at New- 
York, has hitherto been conformable to the usage and practice of the 
churches of Holland last mentioned, and that the elders and deacons 
of the said church in New- York, agreeable to the regulations of the 
churches of Holland above mentioned, are not admitted to their 
respective offices until such proposal, made for three successive Sundays 
after their election, and confirmation thereupon. 

" 15th. That this province was conquered by the Dutch, and after- 
wards, in , was yielded by treaty to the crown of England. 

"John Bogert, jr., and others, ) 
Ads. Abel Hardenbrook. ) 

" And the jurors aforesaid, upon their oath aforesaid, do further say, 
that the province of New- York is part of the country formerly called 
New-Netherlands, and was, before the surrender of the same to the 
crown of England, subject to the States General of the United Provinces 
in Europe, and was settled by subjects to the States General. 

"2d. That antecedent to the said surrender, there were churches in 
the said province, and that all the churches in the same were supplied 
with ministers from the United Provinces of the national established 
Church there, sent out by and subject to the ecclesiastical government 
of the Classis of Amsterdam. 

"3d. That the churches of the national establishment of the said 
United Provinces in Europe, and especially those within the district of 
the said Classis, have always had a succession of elders and deacons, 
chosen from time to time by the majority of the elders and deacons of 
the said churches respectively, and ministers present, without the 
voices of the other members of the same churches. 

"4th. That the Dutch churches in this country, antecedent to the 
said surrender, were governed in a manner conformable to the practice 
and usage of the national established churches of the United Provinces 
in Europe, and the offices and places of the elders and deacons of the 
same have always been, upon every vacancy and avoidance, supplied 
by the election, nomination, and appointment of the majority of the 
elders and deacons in office, without the voices of the other members 
of the same. 

" 5th. That the same government, usage, and practice, was continued 
from the said surrender, in the Dutch Church of the city of New-York, 



THE RIGHT OF VOTING. 



367 



until the same was incorporated by the letters patent above-men- 
tioned. 

M 6th. That for above sixty years past, after the grant of the said 
letters patent of incorporation, there had been a constant succession of 
elders and deacons in the said church, so incorporated, chosen by the 
majority of the elders and deacons of the same church for the time 
being, without the voices of any of the other members of the same, in 
the nomination and appointment of elders and deacons. 

" 7th. And the jurors aforesaid, upon their oath aforesaid, do further 
find the article of capitulation at the surrender of this province in the 
year 1664 — prout : 

" 8th. And the jurors aforesaid, upon their oath aforesaid, do further 
say, that, according to the constitution and directions of the Reformed 
Churches in Holland, approved and instituted by the Xational Synod 
of Dort, the elders and deacons of the said churches do, with the 
ministers present annually nominate and appoint the next succeeding 
elders and deacons, without the consent, approbation, voice, or election 
of any of the other members of the said churches, then had in the said 
nomination and appointment. 

" 9th. And the jurors aforesaid, upon their oath aforesaid, do further 
say, that the plaintiff in this action, since the date of the said charter, 
has been nominated and appointed three several times to the respective 
offices of elder and deacon of the said Reformed Protestant Dutch 
Church of the city of Xew-Tork, by the then present elders and deacons 
of the said church, without the consent, approbation, voice, or election 
of any of the other members of the said church, then had in the said 
nomination and appointment, which respective offices he did accept of. 
and act in the execution of: and that he has, since the date of the said 
charter or letters patent, at three several times nominated and appoint- 
ed, together with the elders and deacons of the said church, then in 
office with him, and without such consent, approbation, voice, or elec- 
tion, as aforesaid, of the other members of the said church, to succeed 
in said respective offices. 

" 10th. And the jurors aforesaid, upon their oath aforesaid, do further 
soy. that it was the practice, usage, and custom of the Reformed Pro- 
testant Dutch Churches in the United Netherlands, before and at the 
time of the said articles of surrender, and of the reformed Protestant 
Dutch Church in the said letters patent of incorporation mentioned, 
ever since until the day of the exhibition of the plaintiffs bill for the 
respective ministers for the time being of the said churches, on 



368 



APPENDIX. 



the three Sundays next succeeding every respective nomination and 
appointment of the elders and deacons of the said respective churches, 
to notify and declare such nomination and appointment to the several 
congregations in which the said elders and deacons were respectively 
nominated and appointed, in order to know whether any of the mem- 
bers of the said churches dissent from or disapprove of such nomination 
and appointment, and in default of such dissent and disapprobation, to 
set apart, confirm, and ordain such elders and deacons in and to their 
respective offices. 

" If the law is for the plaintiff, we find for the plaintiff, and five 
pounds ten shillings damages. 

"If the law is for the defendants, we find for the defendants. 
"Fikd 26th April, 1765. 

" New- York, April 30th, 1765. 
" The preceding, wrote on eight pages in folio, is a true copy of the 
original special verdict given in the cause, Abel Hardenbrook against 
John Bogert, jr., and others. 

" Examined by . 

" Signed, Geo. Banyard, D. C. C. C." 

(Copy.) 



THE CHARTER 'OF QUEER'S COLLEGE. 369 



APPENDIX D. 

THE CHARTER OF QUEEN'S COLLEGE. 

The letter in which it is asserted that a charter had been 
granted for this literary institution, it will be observed, is dated 
September, 1767. But the charter of Queen's (now Rutgers) 
College, which was originally established by the Coetus party, is 
dated March 20, 1770. To account for the discrepance between 
the letter and the charter, as to the date of this instrument, it is 
presumed that only an institution of a secondary rate was at first 
contemplated, and that the difficulties hinted at in the two next 
sentences above delaying the accomplishment of the enterprise, 
it was afterwards determined to make it a college, for which a 
new charter was granted, or the old one, with the necessary 
alterations and additions, new dated. 

The following is a part of the preamble to the College Charter, 
which will be seen to contain nothing that could have been justly 
deemed offensive or exceptionable, 

"Whereas, our loving subjects, being of the Protestant Reformed 
Religion, according to the constitution of the Reformed Churches in the 
United Provinces, and using the discipline of the said churches, as 
approved and instituted by the National Synod of Dort, in the year 
1618 and 1619, are, in this and the neighboring provinces, very numer- 
ous, consisting of many churches and religious assemblies, the min- 
isters and elders of which having taken into serious consideration the 
manner in which the said churches might be properly supplied with an 
able, learned, and well qualified ministry; and thinking it necessary, 
and being very desirous that a college might be erected for that pur- 

16* 



870 



APPENDIX. 



pose within this our province of New- Jersey, in which the learned lan- 
guages, and other branches of useful knowledge, may be taught, and 
degrees conferred ; and especially, that young men of suitable abilities 
maybe instructed in divinity, preparing them for the ministry, and sup- 
plying the necessity of the churches; for themselves, and in behalf of 
their churches, presented a petition to our trusty and well-beloved 
William Franklin, Esq., G-overnor and Commander-in-Chief in and over 
our province of New-Jersey, in America ; setting forth that the incon- 
veniencies are manifold, and the expenses heavy, in either being sup- 
plied with ministers of the G-ospel from foreign parts, or sending young 
men abroad for education ; that the present and increasing necessity for 
a considerable number to be employed in the ministry, is great ; that a 
preservation of a fund for the necessary uses of instruction very much 
depends upon a charter, and therefore humbly entreat that some per- 
sons might be incorporated in a body politic, for the purposes aforesaid : 
and we being willing to grant the reasonable request and prayer of the 
said petitioners, and to promote learning for the benefit of the com- 
munity, and advancement of the Protestant religion, of all denomina- 
tions ; and more especially to remove as much as possible the necessity 
our said loving subjects have hitherto been under of sending their youth 
intended for the ministry to a foreign country for education, and of being 
subordinate to a foreign ecclesiastical jurisdiction : KNOW ye, therefore, 
that considering the premises, WE do of our special grace, certain know- 
ledge, and mere motion, by these presents, will, ordain, grant, and con- 
stitute, that there be a college, called Queen's College, erected in our 
said province of New- Jersey, for the education of youth in the learned 
languages, liberal and useful arts and sciences, and especially in divinity ; 
preparing them for the ministry, and other good offices ; and that the 
trustees of the said college, and their successors for ever, may and shall 
be one body corporate and politic, in deed, fact, and name ; and shall 
be called, known, and distinguished by the name of the Trustees of 
Queen's College, in New-Jersey. 

" We do by these presents, for us, our heirs and successors, create, 
ordain, constitute, nominate, and appoint the Governor or Commander- 
in-Chief, the President of the Council, our Chief Justice, and our Attor- 
ney General of said colony, for the time being, Sir W. Johnson, Bar- 
onet, and Joannes Henricus G-oetschius, Joannes Leydt, David Mau- 
rinus, Martinus Yan Harlingen, Jacob P. Hardenbergh, and William 
Jackson, of our said colony of New- Jersey ; Samuel Yerbryk, Barent 
Yrooman, Maurice G-oetschius, Eilardus Westerlo, John Schunemau, 



THE CHARTER OF QUEEN'S COLLEGE. 



871 



of our province of Xew-York ; and Philip Wyberg and Jonathan 
Dubois, of the province of Pennsylvania ; Henclrick Fisher, Peter 
Zabriskie, Peter Hasenclever, Peter Schenck, Tunis Dev. Philip French, 
John Covenhoven, Henricus Kuyper, of our colony of Xew-Jersey, 
Esqrs. ; and Simon Johnson, Philip Livingston. Joannes Hardenbergh, 
Abraham Hasbrook, Theodoras Yan Wyck, Abraham Lott. Robert 
Livingston, Levi Paulding, John Brinckerhoff. Nicholas Stilv,*ill. Mar- 
tinus Hoffman. Jacob H. Ten Eyck, John Haring, Isaac Yrooman, Bar- 
nardus Ryder, of our province of New- York, Esqi»s., trustees of our said 
college, in Xew- Jersey." 



372 



APPENDIX. 



APPENDIX E. 

THE PLAN OF UNION. 

As the Doctor himself was, without doubt, the author of this 
plan, or of the greater part of it, and as its adoption had an im- 
portant influence over the state of the Church — an influence that 
renders that adoption one of the most memorable and propitious 
events recorded in her history — the reader will probably be gra- 
tified to see the whole of it. 

P RELDHNARIES. 

" Whereas certain misconceptions concerning the bond of union be- 
tween the Churches in this country and those in Holland, have been 
the unhappy causes of the past troubles : In order, therefore, to prevent 
these in future, and in consequence of the advice and direction of the 
reverend Classis of Amsterdam, in their last letter to us, we unite our- 
selves in one body, and we agree with each other to regulate our church 
government, and union with the mother Church in Holland, in the fol- 
lowing manner : 

L Adherence to the Constitution of the Church, 

"We adhere, in all things, to the Constitution of the Netherland Re- 
formed Church, as the same was established in the Church orders of the 
Synod of Dordrecht, in the years 1618 and 1619. 

II. Consistories. 

" The Consistories shall always be appointed, and their business con- 
ducted, agreeably to the Constitution of the Netherland Churches. 



THE PLAN OF UNION. 



373 



IIL Organization of the Superior Church Judicatories. 

"In addition to the above, we organize or establish, according to the 
counsel and advice of the reverend Classis of Amsterdam, approved in 
the Synod of North-Holland, such ecclesiastical assemblies as are consist- 
ent with the government and constitution of the Netherland Church, and 
our relation to the same ; which judicatories shall be distinguished by 
such names as shall hereafter be determined. 

IT. Number of these in general 

" These judicatories shall be two in number, which we provisionally 
call the Particular and General Assembly, till their names shall be more 
particularly agreed upon. 

Y. Matters to be discussed in the Particular Assemblies. 

" In the Particular Assemblies, all matters regarding the interests of 
subordinate congregations, and which can not be determined by the con- 
sistories, shall, in the first instance, be regularly brought forward, and 
acted upon, (even to the suspension of ministers for improper conduct,) 
before they can be brought up to a higher tribunal. 

YI. Members of these Assemblies. 

"At these Assemblies, each minister, with his elder, belonging to the 
same, and furnished with suitable ecclesiastical credentials, shall attend 
at the proper time and place. "With respect to absentees, special regu- 
lations may afterwards be made. 

YII. Number of these Assemblies. 

u These Assemblies shall be five in number. This number may, nev- 
ertheless, hereafter be increased by the General Assembly, and the placo 
of meeting changed, as circumstances shall require. - 

YIIL Three in the Province of New- York, and two in New- Jersey. 

" Three of these Assemblies shall be held in the province of New- 
York, and two in the province of New-Jersey. 

IX. One in the City of Neiv- York. 

" In the province of New- York, one shall be held in the city of New- 
York ; to which shall belong all the Low Dutch Reformed churches, 



374 



APPENDIX. 



whatever their language may be, on Long-Island, in the city and coun- 
ty of New- York, and in the county of Westchester. Whether the 
churches in the county of Richmond shall belong to this Assembly, is 
not yet determined. 

X. One in Kingston. 

"Another shall be held in Kingston, to which shall belong the 
churches of Dutchess and Ulster couaties, and the congregation of the 
Camp. 

XL One in Albany. 

" A third shall be held alternately in Albany and Schenectady, to 
which shall belong the churches in the counties of Albany, G-locester 
and Cumberland. 

XII. One in Brunswick. 

" In the province of New- Jersey, one shall be held at New-Brunswick, 
to which shall belong the churches in the counties of Richmond, Mon- 
mouth, Middlesex, Somerset, Hunterdon and Sussex. 

XIII. One in Hackensadc. 

" The other shall be at Hackensack, to which shall belong those of 
the counties of Bergen, Orange, Essex, and Morris. 

XIY. Time of Meeting. 

" These Assemblies, on account of the distance of the respective mem- 
bers from each other, shall not hold more than one ordinary meeting in 
each year. The particular time of meeting is deferred to a future op- 
portunity. 

XY. Correspondents. 

"When these Particular Assemblies shall correspond with each other, 
and in what manner, is also deferred. 

XYI. General Assembly. 

"In addition to the above, a General Assembly shall be held 
every year, composed of delegates from each Particular Assembly. 

XYII. HMembers of the same. 

"To this reverend Assembly shall be delegated, from each Particular 
Assembly, two ministers, each with an elder, furnished with suitable 
credentials. 



THE PLAN" OF UNION. 



375 



XYIII. Place of Meeting. 

" The meetings of this General Assembly shall be held alternately at 
New-York and Kingston; the reverend Assembly, shall, nevertheless, 
have liberty of appointing a third place of meeting in the province of 
New-Jersey. 

XIX. Time of Meeting. 

"The time of meeting shall be considered hereafter, and appointed in 
the most suitable season, and so as to be most convenient for the Parti- 
cular Assemblies. 

XX Examination, Preparation, and Peremption. 

" For this General Assembly, with the approbation of the reverend 
Synod of North-Holland, and the reverend Classis of Amsterdam, we 
assume the long-wished-for right of examining candidates for licensure 
and for the ministry ; and also further to qualify those who are lawfully 
called, as the same is practised in the Netherlands. A list of all those 
who have been examined and ordained, as also of the newly-settled 
and removed ministers, shall be kept in our yearly acts, and sent over 
with a request to the reverend Classis of Amsterdam, that they may 
be carefully inserted in the register of ministers, and numbered by them 
among the North- American preachers in both provinces. 

XXI. Matters to Is treated of in the General Assembly. 

"All church matters which can not be determined in the Particu- 
lar Assemblies shall, when regularly brought up, receive their complete 
and final decision in the General Assembly. In some particular cases 
the following rules shall be adopted : 

XXII. Union with the Church of Holland. 

" To preserve in the best possible manner the bond of union with our 
highly esteemed mother Church, (which we greatly desire,) there shall 
first be sent, every year, a complete copy of all the acts of our General 
Assembly, signed by the Prceses and Scriba for the time being, to the 
Classis of Amsterdam, as duly named by the Synod of North-Holland 
for that purpose. 

XXIII. Appeals concerning Doctrines. 

" Secondly, "Whenever differences may arise on important doctrines 
among the brethren, whether ministers or communicants, a decision on 



876 



APPENDIX, 



which might be matter of grievance to some, the case in difference shall 
be left to the judgment of the reverend Classis, or if need be, to the 
reverend Synod of North-Holland, according to whose decision the 
General Assembly, as well as the condemned party, shall conform or 
act. 

XXIY. Depositions. 

"In case a minister, on account of doctrine or life, shall be deposed, 
and conceive himself aggrieved by such deposition, he shall have the 
liberty of laying his case before the reverend Classis of Amsterdam, or 
through it before the reverend Synod, for their judgment, whether he 
may be called again or not ; and the G-eneral Assembly, with the de- 
posed minister, shall be bound to submit to the judgment of the reve- 
rend Classis. In the mean time, however, in consequence of the length 
of time required for deciding such an unhoped-for case, the congrega- 
tion of the deposed minister, if they request it, shall be furnished with 
another pastor. 

XXY. Approbation of Calls, 

" It is agreed, that the approbations of the calls of candidates, on 
their exam, peremp., shall be given to the G-eneral Assembly, but that 
of ministers, considering the wants of the Church, shall be given to the 
Particular Assembly to which the calling congregation belongs. 

XXVI. Visitation of the Churches. 

11 Concerning the visitation of churches, there shall be particular 
regulations adopted in the General Assembly which is to be organ- 
ized. 

XXYII. Extraordinary Meetings. 

" Extraordinary meetings of the General and Particular Assemblies 
may be held for the examination and decision of matters which, for 
urgent reasons, can not be deferred till the ordinary meeting. These 
meetings may be called by the last Prceses and Scriba of the respective 
assemblies. 

XXVIII. Professorate. 

" Concerning the professorate, we will act according to the advice of 
the reverend Classis of Amsterdam, namely: we will provisionally 
choose one or two professors to teach didactic, elenchtic, exegetic, etc., 
theology, according to the received doctrines of our Low Dutch Ee- 
formed Church, to which office we, according to the judgment of the 



THE PLAN OF UNION. 



377 



Classis, will choose, on favorable terms, such divines from the Nether- 
lands as are of acknowledged learning, piety, and orthodoxy, and im- 
mutably attached to the Xetherland formulas of union, said Classis 
having promised to recommend suitable characters. 

XXIX. Further Regulations respecting the Professorate. 

" The professor or professors above mentioned, as soon as the wished- 
foi reconciliation in this country is obtained and finally established, 
shall be chosen and called, on a sufficient salary, though not without 
the approbation of the G-eneral Assembly, with this provision that such 
professor or professors shall not stand in any connection with English 
academies, but shall give lectures on theology, in their own dwellings, 
to such students only who can produce testimony that they have studied 
two or three years at a college or academy, under approved teachers, 
and improved themselves in preparatory studies, such as the languages, 
philosophy, etc. Such professor or professors shall also preach once 
every month or fortnight, in Dutch or English, as well to assist the 
minister of the place where he or they reside, as to afford the students 
a good model of preaching, in consequence of which, the reverend 
professor or professors, shall be subject to the Particular and G-eneral 
Assemblies, in the same manner as is already specified, particularly of 
the ministers. 

XXX. Provisional Exception. 

" Nevertheless, since we, according to the condition stipulated by the 
Classis, can cherish no hopes of reaping the fruits of the above-mentioned 
professorate for a long time to come, we are of opinion, as there are 
now a number of students with one or other minister, who probably 
will in a short time be fitted for the exam, prepar., that these students 
ought, in consequence of the great need of the churches, to be provi- 
sionally examined at the next meeting of our General Assembly. 

XXXI. Schools under the care of the Churches. 

" Finally, the respective congregations shall hereafter make it their 
business to establish public or private schools, in which, under the 
direction of Consistories, instructions shall be given, as well in the 
languages as in the fundamental principles or doctrines of the Reformed 
Dutch Church, as the same are taught in our Low Dutch churches. 



378 



APPENDIX. 



GRIEVANCES. 

AETICLE I. 

" Concerning those congregations who have two Consistories and 
two ministers, it would be desirable that they should unite in one body ; 
but where this is impracticable, matters shall remain in statu quo, till 
means and opportunities shall be found, in God's providence, to lead to 
this union. 

ARTICLE II. 

" To those congregations who have one minister, but two consistories, 
it is earnestly recommended that they unite in one Consistory. The 
reverend brethren shall likewise avail themselves of every opportunity 
which offers, by brotherly exhortation, to effect the same ; as also for 
those congregations which are situated as stated in the first article 
whilst we cordially supplicate the God of peace to remove all remaining 
grievances from such congregations. 

ARTICLE III. 

" Since, during the past troubles, some persons have been ordained 
for the holy ministry, whose examination and ordination is not deemed 
valid by some of the brethren, yet for peace' sake, rather than that the 
contemplated union should not be accomplished, these brethren agree, 
that every one whom the reverend Ccetes acknowledges as an ordained 
minister, shall be considered as such, and in that capacity take his seat 
in our Assemblies, not doubting but the reverend Classis of Amsterdam 
will agree with us in this particular. 

ARTICLE IV. 

"Since the reverend Classis of Amsterdam, in one of their last letters, 
express themselves favorably of the Rev. Hermanus Meyer, from which 
it plainly appears that they would fondly see a reunion between him 
and his congregation, if it were possible ; we are of opinion, that in case 
that reverend brother accedes to the aforesaid articles of union, and sub- 
jects himself to this arrangement, such subjection is a sufficient ground 
to give him, as our esteemed brother, a seat and voice in the above- 
mentioned Particular and General Assemblies, whilst the reverend Assem- 
blies, as soon as they are organized in the manner specified, with the 



THE PLAN OF UNION. 



379 



advice of the reverend Classis. will offer their friendly aid for adjusting 
the differences between hirn and the congregation of Kingston, in case 
the wished-for union between them is not previously accomplished. 

CONCLUDING ARTICLES. 
L Exception. 

"The preceding articles shall not be binding in cases where they are 
hostile to any privileges granted by charter to any church. 

II. Binding force of these Articles. 

" As soon as these articles are constitutionally received and approved 
by this Assembly, each member shall provisionally give the other the 
hand of brotherhood or fellowship, in hopes that the reverend Classis and 
our respective congregations will approve and ratify the same, but they 
shall not be obligatory before such approbation of them shall be given 
by our respective congregations and the reverend Classis. 

ARTICLE III. 

"Since the Committee have the satisfaction to be unanimous in their 
opinion on these articles, subject, however, to superior judgment, it is 
their cordial desire and prayer, that this reverend Assembly may adopt 
the same, that the long-wished-for union may, if possible, be effected 
according to these articles, which may the G-od of peace and love grant 
of his mercy. 

"Xew-York, October 18, IT Yl. 

i: Signed by the above-mentioned Committee." 



380 



APPENDIX. 



APPENDIX R 

THE HEY. DR. HARDENBERGH, FIRST PRESIDENT OF 
queen's COLLEGE. 

(Abridged from the Rev. Dr. Messier* s 11 Hollanders in New- Jersey") 

Jacobus Rutsen Hardenbergh was born at Rosendale, Ulster 
co., N. Y., in the year 1738. He was the son of Joannes Har- 
denbergh, the chief owner of the manorial patent which embraced 
the whole of Sullivan and parts of Orange and Sullivan counties. 
He was not favored with the same advantages in early life as his 
contemporaries, but such was the force of his mind and the ardor 
of his application, that he rose to distinguished eminence and in 
the words of the Rev. Dr. Romeyn, " was justly esteemed a great 
divine." He began his theological studies at Raritan, N. J., 
under the direction of the Rev. John Frelinghuysen, and after his 
early and lamented death, married his widow, a woman of 
extraordinary endowments of mind, and of very fervent piety, 
whose memory, under the familiar name of " Yeffrow Harden- 
bergh," is still fragrant in the hearts of the pious people of that 
region. He completed his theological studies at Schenectady 
under the Rev. Dr. Romeyn, and was ordained in 1757. He was 
then called to the charge of five congregations in Somerset 
county, N. J., namely: Raritan, Bedminster, North-Branch, 
Neshanic and Harlingen, among whom he commenced his labors 
in May, 1758. The two last mentioned churches withdrew from 
the others in 1761 and called a separate minister, the late Rev. 
Jno. M. Van Harlingen. During the next year Mr. Hardenbergh 



KEY. DE. HAEDEXBEEGH. 881 



paid a visit to Holland, and is said to have been the first minister 
ordained in America who ever preached in the churches of the 
Fatherland. On his return he was made D.D. by the trustees of 
Nassau Hall, Princeton. 

His ministry at Raritan, which lasted for twenty -five years, 
afforded abundant evidence of his energy and zeal. He was 
faithful and unwearied in his efforts to stem the dissoluteness 
which naturally followed from the disorders of the Revolutionary 
contest. As for the contest itself, he was a sterling patriot and 
took no pains to conceal his sentiments, but supported the cause 
both by his oratory and his pen. He was a friend of Washing- 
ton, who, when at his head-quarters in the neighborhood, often 
visited the Dominie at his parsonage. This made him a special 
object of hate to the Tories, and he was compelled for a long 
time to sleep with a loaded musket beside his bed. But he 
escaped unharmed and remained on his post until near the close 
of the war. He was a member of the convention which framed 
the first Constitution of New-Jersey. In 1781 he resigned his 
call and removed to Mombacus, now Rochester, Ulster Co., N. Y. ? 
where he labored for several years with his accustomed fidelity 
and zeal. 

Dr. Hardenbergh, having been ordained by the Ccetus, was of 
course a warm supporter of that party. Anxious to secure and 
establish the independence of the Church, he was unwearied in 
his efforts to provide the means for the instruction of a ministry 
at home. It was principally through his influence while settled 
at Raritan that the charter of Queen's College was obtained in 
1770 from the colonial Governor of New- Jersey. Hence when 
the struggle of the Revolution was over and the return of peace 
allowed the friends of the institution tg proceed with their 
measures to endow and organize it, it is not strange that he was 
called to be its first president. In obedience to the call he left 
his paternal halls in 1786 and removed to New-Brunswick, where, 
in connection with his duties in the college, he held the office of 
pastor of the Reformed Dutch Church. But the labors of the 
station proved too severe for his enfeebled constitution, and he 
died of pulmonary disease on the 30th of October, 1790. His 
dust mingles with that of Condict, Livingston, DeWitt, Woodhull, 



882 APPENDIX. 

and Cannon, who like him died while laboring to advance the in- 
terests of the institution at New-Brunswick. "His piety was 
ardent; his labors indefatigable; his ministry greatly blessed; 
and when he died he was universally lamented." — (The Rev. Dr. 
Romeyn, in the Christian 1 s Magazine.) 



REV. THEODORIC ROMEYN, D.D, 



383 



APPENDIX Gr. 

THE KEY. THEODORIC ROMEYX, D.D, 

The Rev. Dr. T. Romeyx was one of the brightest ornaments 
and most useful ministers of the Dutch Church. In rigor of in- 
tellect, learning, piety, and zeal, there were few superior to him ; 
and the letters of Dr. L. to him afford a strong attestation of his 
eminent worth, and of the great influence which he had in their 
assemblies. Of four or five, Dr. TYesterlo, Dr. Hardenbergh, Dr. 
Meyer, Dr. Romeyn, and Dr. L., whose heads, and hearts, and 
hands, had been very remarkably united in some of the most im- 
portant business of the Church, and who had labored with equal 
zeal and perseverance to promote her best interests, the latter 
was now the only one left. 

The following tribute of respect to the memory of Dr. Romeyn 
is given in a volume of the sermons of his distinguished son, the 
late Rev. Dr. J. B. Romeyn, of New- York, as an extract from the 
funeral sermon preached on the occasion of his death, by his 
colleague and successor, the late Rev. John H. Mier. (See Yol. 
i. page 194.) 

"The Rev. Dr. Romeyn possessed a mind strong and energetic and 
more than ordinarily comprehensive, capable of viewing things in their 
natures, their connections, their dependencies, and ends. His appre- 
hension was quick, his understanding clear and informed. His judg- 
ment was sound and mature, and his memory remarkably retentive. In 
the application of these powers of mind, he was chiefly bent upon his 
professional studies. In these he most delighted, and labored most of 



384 



APPENDIX. 



all to excel. He was versed in the circles of general science, well read 
in history, and had made no mean attainments in the philosophy of the 
human mind. 

" In the discharge of his ministerial functions, he proved himself an 
able minister of the New Testament, a watchman that needed not be 
ashamed. As he had loved the doctrines of grace, and had experienced 
their power and influence on his own heart, so also he insisted upon 
them in his public ministrations. His theme uniformly was Christ and 
him crucified. His manner was bold, intrepid, and daring. In the exe- 
cution of his duties he was neither daunted nor moved. He was the Bo- 
anerges of the day. When he reproved, the sinner trembled. When 
he pronounced Ebal's curses against the wicked, it was like the thun- 
ders of Sinai. He, however, was not incapable of the pathetic. He 
could, at times, move the heart and melt the audience into tears. His 
discourses were solid and interesting, ofttimes enlivened by historical 
anecdotes. In the introduction of these he was peculiarly happy. He 
always entered deep into his subject. His delivery was animated and 
unaffected, without ostentation, and becoming his subject. He aimed 
at nothing but what was perfectly natural. 

" In his intercourse with the world, he supported a becoming dignity. 
Independence of sentiment marked his path through its busy rounds. 
He knew not how to dissemble. He was polite to all, familiar with 
few. This rendered the circle of his intimates contracted, and the num- 
ber of his confidential friends small. In his conversation he was inte- 
resting, always instructing. His family in him have lost an affectionate 
relative, a watchful guardian, and a great example ; the Church a pil- 
lar, and society an ornament," 



KEY. DR. G-. A. KUYPERS. 



385 



APPEXDIX H. 

# 

THE REY. DR. G. A. KUYPERS. 

Gerardus A. Kuypers was born of Holland ancestors in the 
island of Curacoa, Xov. 16, 1766. He was brought to this 
country in early childhood by his father, the Rev. TYarcnoldus 
Kuypers, and received his education in the Academy at Hacken- 
sack, X. J., under the late learned and pious Dr. Peter Wilson. 
His theological studies were pursued under the superintendence 
of his father, and of the Rev. Drs. Romeyn and Meyer. Having 
been licensed to preach the Gospel by the Particular Synod of 
Xew-York in October, 1787, in the following June he was or- 
dained to the ministry and installed as a collegiate pastor of the 
Reformed Dutch Church of Paramus. Upon a second invitation 
from the church of Xew-Y'ork, he became one of its pastors in 
connection with the Rev. Drs. Livingston and Linn, his ser- 
vices being confined to the church in Garden street, where he 
was installed as preacher in the Dutch language, by Dr. Living- 
ston, on the first Lord's day in May, 1789. He continued to 
preach in the Dutch, of which he was a finished master, until 1803, 
when that language was disused in the services of the sanctuary. 
From that time he ministered in equal measure with his col- 
leagues in all the edifices used for public worship until the month 
of June, 1833, when it pleased the Master to call him home. Du- 
ring his ministry of more than forty-four years he was contem- 
porary with ten colleagues, five of whom preceded him to the 
inheritance above. At the time of his death, he was the senior of 
17 



386 



APPENDIX. 



all the pastors of all the denominations in the city of New* 
York. 

It appears by the discourse of the Key. Dr. Knox, preached 
upon the occasion of his death, (from which the preceding details 
have been drawn,) that Dr. Kuypers was a man of sound and 
well furnished mind, of singularly retentive and accurate memo- 
ry, of rare self-control, and of a holy, humble, and consistent life. 
He was a profound student of the Bible, warmly attached to the 
doctrines of grace, and a richly evangelical and practical preacher. 
His pastoral gifts were excellent, and his profiting in them ap- 
peared unto all. He was a man of peace and prudence, even to a 
proverb. His end was such as became his life : it was peace- 
assured, serene, overflowing peace. 



REV DR. ABEEL. 



887 



APPENDIX L 

THE REV. DR. ABEEL. 

J ohh N. Abeel was a native of the city of New-York. Having 
made sufficient progress in preparatory studies, at a school in 
Morristown, N. J., he entered Princeton College ; and his course 
in this institution completed, he commenced the study of law in 
New-Brunswick under the late Judge Patterson. In the office of 
this gentleman he remained about a year, when, being made ex- 
perimentally acquainted with the power of divine grace, he left 
it and put himself under the care of Dr. Livingston, to study the- 
ology. Shortly after, receiving the appointment of a tutor of 
Princeton College, he repaired thither, and while engaged in the 
duties of this station, prosecuted and finished his preparations for 
the ministry, under the celebrated Dr. TTitherspoon. He was li- 
censed to preach the Gospel by the Classis of New- York, in the 
month of April, 1793. His first settlement was in the second 
Presbyterian Church of Philadelphia, as a colleague with the 
Rev. Dr. Green ; but in the fall of 1795, he accepted a call from 
the church of New- York, and removed to this city, where he la- 
bored in the Gospel, until the commencement of the disease 
which terminated in his death. He died in January, 1812, in 
the forty-third year of his age. This eminent servant of Christ 
was indeed a "beloved minister." His eloquence in the pulpit, 
mild, interesting, and persuasive in an uncommon degree ; his 
amiable disposition and unassuming manners ; his affable and in- 
structive conversation ; his unaffected piety ; his fervent zeal, 



388 



APPENDIX. 



greatly endeared him to the people of his charge, and to the 
Church at large. Many precious souls received the grace of God 
under his faithful preaching, who will be his glory and his joy in 
the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ; and his great and suc- 
cessful exertions in behalf of the theological school ought never 
to be forgotten. 



KEY. DR. SCHUREMAN. 



389 



APPENDIX J. 

THE REV. DR3. SCHUREMAX AND BRODHEAD. 

DR. S C H U R E M A N . 

John Schtreman was born Oct. 19, 1778, in the neighborhood 
of Xew-Brunswick. As soon as he was sufficiently initiated in 
the learned languages, and other preparatory studies, he became 
a member of Queen's College, and was admitted to the degree of 
Bachelor of Arts in that institution, Sept. 30, 1795, when he was 
not yet seventeen years of age. He pursued the study of theolo- 
gy under Dr. Livingston, and, in 1800, was licensed to preach 
the Gospel. About a year after, he was ordained to the service 
of the sanctuary, and installed pastor of the Reformed Dutch 
Church at Bedminster, X. J. In 1807, he accepted a call from 
the Reformed Dutch Church at Millstone, N. J., and in 1809, he 
was called and installed one of the pastors of the Collegiate Re- 
formed Dutch Church in New- York. He had not been settled long 
in the city, before he found his health to fail him, and this contin- 
uing to be the case more and more, upon receiving an invitation to 
occupy the vacancy in Queen's College, occasioned by the death of 
Dr. Condict, he resigned his pastoral charge, and removed to New- 
Brunswick, in 1811. The college was, for the present at least, 
irrecoverably depressed, and all the efforts he could employ to 
improve its state, proved unavailing ; but his removal was, by 
the divine blessing, the means of restoring his health. In Janua- 
ry, 1813, he was installed in the pastoral charge of the Reformed 
Dutch Church in New-Brunswick ; this situation, however, the 
failure of his health again soon compelled him to relinquish. In 



390 



APPENDIX. 



October, 1815, the General Synod, as stated above, appointed 
him professor of ecclesiastical history, etc., and in May, 1818, his 
earthly house was dissolved, and he was translated to an house 
not made with hands, eternal in the heavens, in the 40th year of 
his age. His character was well drawn in a few words, in a 
letter addressed to the Rev. Dr. Gunn, shortly after his death, by 
Dr. Livingston. 

" Tou knew him. He was mild and pleasant; discerning and firm ; 
steadfast, but not obstinate ; zealous, but not assuming. The frequent 
hemorrhage of his lungs and the habitual weakness of his constitution 
prevented him from close and intense studies; yet he was a good 
belles-lettres scholar. His style was correct and pure ; and he made 
such progress in the official branches of his professorship, that his 
lectures upon ecclesiastical history and pastoral theology were highly 
acceptable, and very useful. The suavity of his manners and the pro- 
priety of his conduct endeared him to the students, and recommended 
him to the respect and affection of all who knew him. He was grow- 
ing into extensive usefulness, and had he lived, and progressed as he 
began, would have become a treasure to the Theological College." 

He was truly one of the excellent of the earth, and furnished 
with such gifts, natural and acquired, that had his life been 
spared he would doubtless have become very distinguished in the 
department assigned him. The Church greatly deplored the 
loss sustained in his death ; and the following was the expres- 
sion of the sentiments of the General Synod, in reference to the 
event : 

"The death of the late professor, Rev. Dr. John Schureman, is an 
event which, however it may have been his incalculable gain, is deeply 
to be deplored by us. So amiable were his manners, so undoubted his 
piety, so acceptable his services, and so nattering were the prospects, 
as to his usefulness to the Church, that we can not but mourn that such 
a man is removed from our institution. But it is the Lord's will, and 
we are to be resigned ; besides, the cause of our college we trust is the 
Lord's cause, and we are assured that it shall be promoted." At the 
next session of Synod, it was resolved, " that a plain tombstone be 
erected over his grave, with a suitable inscription, declaring the import- 



KEY. LE. BRODHEAD. 



391 



ant station he occupied in the Church, and the esteem which this body 
will long cherish for one whose praise was in all the churches." 

DR. BRODHEAD. 

The following sketch of Dr. Beodhead's life and labors is 
abridged from the narrative given at his funeral, June 8, 1855, by 
the Rev. Thomas DeWitt, D.D. 

11 Jacob Brodhead was born at Marbletown, Ulster Co., X. Y., on 
the 14th of May, 1782, of an old Xew-York family. His father was an 
officer in the Revolutionary army, and was present in command of a 
company of grenadiers at Burgoyne's surrender at Saratoga. In 1794 
young Jacob commenced to study the languages under the Rev. 
Abraham Van Home of Rochester, and at different periods subsequent- 
ly continued his studies at Schenectady and Kingston. In November, 
1799, he entered the junior class in Union College, and was graduated in 
the spring of 1801. He pursued his theological studies at first under 
the J^ev. Di\ Fraeligh, at Hackensack, X. J., and afterwards under his 
uncle, the Rev. Dr. Theodoric Romeyn, at Schenectady ; during the 
latter period he also held the office of tutor in Union College. 

* ; In April, 1304, he was licensed to preach by the Classis of Albany, 
and immediately received a call to the Reformed Dutch Church at 
R-binebeck Flats, where he was ordained and installed in the following 
October. In the same month he was married to Eliza, daughter of John 
X. Bleecker, of Albany. 

" The general character of Dr. Brodhead, and the popularity of his 
public services, attracted attention from other parts of the Church. In 
Xovember. 1809, he received a call from the Collegiate Reformed Dutch 
Church in this city, which he accepted ; and on the morning of Sunday 
the 17 th of December following, he and the Rev. John Schureman 
were installed as colleagues with Doctors Livingston, Kuypers, and 
Abeel. The same afternoon Dr. Brodhead preached his introductory 
sermon in the ^liddle Church, from the text in 2 Cor. 12 : 14: 'For I 
seek not yours, but you.' 

' : Dr. Brodheads ministrations in the Collegiate Church were very 
acceptable and useful, and he won his way into the affections and 
respect of the people, many of whom still hold his labors here in grate- 
ful remembrance. He was active and earnest, as well in the Church as 



392 



APPENDIX. 



out of it. Having been appointed in 1811, during the war, by Governor 
Tompkins, chaplain of a regiment of artillery, he constantly visited the 
troops at their station in the performance of his duty. In 1812, he was 
elected one of the trustees of Queen's (now Eutgers) College ; and it is 
but just to say, that no one of his associates in that Board, during the 
many years he held a seat in it, surpassed him in devoted and intelli- 
gent service in behalf of the institution 

" A new enterprise, however, had been started, for the extension of 
the Reformed Dutch Church in the State of Pennsylvania ; and Dr. 
Brodhead was appealed to, as the agent to carry it into effect. In the 
summer of 1813 he was urgently solicited by the congregation in 
Crown street to go to Philadelphia, and undertake the establishment of 
the first Reformed Dutch Church in that city. He yielded to these 
solicitations, res igned his position in the Collegiate Church, and went 
to Philadelphia in September of that year. In his labors in that sphere 
he was eminently successful. He took a high stand at once among the 
clergy in that city. The venerable Bishop White, Dr. Milnor, and Mr. 
Boyd, of the Episcopal Church ; Dr. Green, Dr. Potts, and Dr. Jane way, 
of the Presbyterian ; Dr. Helmuth, Dr. Staughton, and other eminent 
ministers of other denominations, were among his warmest friends. 
The Rev. Joseph Eastburn, well known as ''Father Eastburn,'' the 
seaman's friend, was very intimate with him, and frequently assisted 
him in his pulpit services. A second Reformed Dutch Church was 
organized under Dr. Brodhead's auspices, and for several years was 
ministered to by the Rev. David Parker. Another was established in 
Spring Garden, which was ministered to, during his residence in Phila- 
delphia, first by the Rev. Brogun HofF, and afterwards by the 
Rev. Jacob C. Sears. The congregation and the membership of 
the Crown-street Church continually increased until they became strong 
and prosperous. The blessing of the Head of the Church rested upon 
his ministry during its continuance there for twelve years, in which time 
he declined several invitations to other places, among which was Mar- 
ket street, in this city, where a new Reformed Dutch Church had been 
organized. He was also strongly urged to accept a call from the Yan- 
dewater-street Church ; and overtures were made to him to become 
President of the Theological Seminary at Carlisle. 

"In the spring of 182G, Dr. Brodhead returned to New-York, 
having accepted a call from the Reformed Dutch Church in Broome 
street, which was then in a weak condition. Old friends greeted his 
return warmly ; and many flocked to attend his preaching. His church 



REV. DR. BRODHEAD. 



393 



was soon filled. Nor did he neglect the calls of duty and benevolence 
in various departments. Among other efforts of this character, he took 
an active part in the first steps toward the foundation of the present 
New- York University. He remained the acceptable and useful pastor 
of the Broome-street Church until October, 183 T ; when, for the benefit 
of his wife's health, and having purchased a country residence on the 
margin of the Hudson river, he removed to Saugerties, in Ulster county, 
and accepted a call from the church at Flatbush, in its vicinity, a few 
miles north of Kingston. 

u In the spring of 1841, after much solicitation, Dr. Brodhead was 
prevailed upon to give up his residence in the country, and become the 
minister of the Central Reformed Dutch Church in Brooklyn, in which 
charge he continued until October, 1846, when he relinquished it. From 
this time he resided alternately at Brooklyn, New- York, and Spring- 
field, with different branches of his family, almost constantly performing 
ministerial services for vacant churches, or in aid of his brethren. In 
October, 1854, he visited New- York, and remained with his only son 
during the winter. He preached once on each Sunday during the 
winter, in the Broome-street Church, which was then vacant, and in 
the Collegiate churches. His last sermon was preached in the Ninth - 
street Church, on the first Sunday in March, upon the parable of tho 
Pharisee and Publican, Luke 18:9, etc. 

" Soon afterwards his health failed, and he returned to his daughter's 
residence at Springfield towards the end of April, in the hope that a 
change of air would be beneficial. In this he was disappointed. Dis- 
ease rapidly advanced and took firmer and deeper hold. But the love 
of that truth which he preached so earnestly in life, was strong in 
death. He looked serenely at the approach of the destroyer with firm 
confidence in Christ, until at last, on the morning of Wednesday, the 
6th of June, surrounded by his surviving family, he gently and peace- 
fully fell asleep in the faith and hope of that Saviour whom he had 
loved and served. 

"The piety of Dr. Brodhead, springing up in early life, was deep 
and tender. It was not impulsive and spasmodic, but springing from 
the living fountain — ' the well of water within the soul, springing up 
into everlasting life ' — and it was steady and even, expanding and deep- 
ening in its onward course. It intermingled with all his studies, labors, 
and associations in life, and stamped the character of his ministerial 
and pastoral services. His sentiments were strictly and decidedly 
evangelical, in close conformity to the Church of his fathers, which he 



17* 



394 



APPENDIX. 



loved and served. They were ever prominent in his preaching, clothed 
in the mould of experience and practice. He was distinguished by the 
great tenderness of feeling which characterized his preaching and his 
pastoral intercourse with his people. Those who attended his minis- 
trations remember how often, in the fullness of his emotions, his voice 
faltered, and tears flowed forth, as he besought sinners to be reconciled 
unto G-od, and dwelt upon the love and grace of Christ. His manner 
was simple, chaste, animated, and effective. His prominent character- 
istic was that of a 1 son of consolation;' but, knowing the 'terrors of the 
Lord,' he could employ them in order to 'persuade men.' His appeals 
to the impenitent were often most bold and pungent, but they were 
ever in the spirit of Paul, who said : ' Of whom I have told you often, 
and tell you even now, weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross 
of Christ.' 

"Dr. Brodhead combined the strongest and most uncompromising 
attachment to the doctrines and order of his own Church, with an en- 
larged charity towards, and the kindest friendly intercourse with, evan- 
gelical Christians of different denominations. His spirit was large, 
loving, and catholic. The courtesy and amenity of his manners, the 
faithfulness and acceptableness of his preaching, and his benevolent 
pastoral intercourse, left a sweet savor of affectionate regard in every 
church where he ministered ; and in his visits to them afterwards, and 
in supplying his old pulpits, he was ever most ardently greeted. Not a 
ruffle cf feeling in all his pastoral charges was ever found. He has 
now received the end of his faith — the salvation of his soul. 



REV. ELIAS VAX BUNSCHOOTEK. 



395 



APPENDIX K. 

THE REV. ELIAS VAX BUXSCHOOTEX. 

The following notice is abridged from the Rev. Dr. McClure's 
article in the Xew-Bru:iswick Review, February, 1855 : 

" Elias Vax Buxschootex [tliis mode of spelling the name is adopted 
because it is the one which is found on his college diploma, and which 
he was wont to use himself] was born at Xew-Hackensack, Dutchess 
county. X. Y.. on the 26th of October, 1738. All that is known of his 
early education is, that he was honorably graduated from Xassau Hall, 
in October, IT 63. He afterwards studied for the ministry with the 
Rev. Harmannus Meyer, of Kingston, and the pupil reflected honor on 
his worthy instructor. Living tradition speaks of Mr. Van Bunschoo- 
ten as a scholar and lover of learning. This is also indicated by the 
collection of books he left at his death. The venerable tomes of Dutch 
and Latin divinity and commentary, show plainly enough what were 
his favorite studies. It is, perhaps, a still better proof of his proficiency 
that persons residing on the field of his later labors ascribe the present 
high state of mental and moral culture there very much to the influence 
of his able and learned ministry. 

" He was licensed to preach in 1773. His first settement in the min- 
istry was at Schaghticoke, on the Hudson, where he labored in the Gos- 
pel for several years. "We know not why he left that place in 1785 
The rest of his life was spent in missionary labor, in the beautiful Kit- 
titiny Valley, which, with a breadth varying from ten to twenty miles, 
extends more than a hundred miles from the Delaware to the Hud- 
son. This valley has a water-shed each way, the Paulin's kill and the 
\Vall kill having their sources near together — the former running into 
the Delaware, and the latter into the Hudson. This valley comprises 



896 



APPENDIX. 



nearly the whole of the counties of barren and Sussex, in New- Jersey, 
and of Orange and Ulster in New- York. It is one of the finest and 
healthiest grazing and dairy regions in this country, but was very 
thinly peopled at the close of the Bevolutionary war. Though lying 
mostly within fifty or a hundred miles of our great commercial empo- 
rium, this was then a frontier region. 

"May 11, 1785, Mr. Yan Bunschooten received a call from three 
consistories, combined in one charge. He accepted the call on the 
9th of July, and was duly installed on the 29th of August, by his old 
and intimate friend, Dr. Jacob B. Hardeubergh. His parochial charge 
extended to the magnificent length of fifty miles, through which the 
settlers' axes had forced a few rough horse-tracks. One of these three 
preaching stations was Magagkamack, near the romantic spot now 
known to travellers over the Erie railroad as Port Jarvis. Another of 
these stations was Minisink, and the third was Walpack, occupying an 
angle of the Delaware, where three States — New- York, New-Jersey, 
and Pennsylvania — corner on each other. His stipend of a little more 
than a hundred pounds, was raised by the three congregations in un- 
equal proportions. There is a local tradition, that a deacon who collected 
his pittance in Minisink, defaulting in payment, mortgaged his farm to 
the dominie as security. The mortgage was foreclosed after he had 
ceased to minister in that place, and was given to the church for a par- 
sonage. 

"It was while he tended this triple charge, that the Clove church 
was formed. This place had its name from the Dutch kloof a valley 
cloven by a stream ; and it makes a part of the wealthy township of 
Wantage. It was here that he closed his useful life. The inhabitants, 
to the number of fifty-eight, in an instrument bearing date August 21, 
1787, petitioned the reverend Classis ox New-Brunswick to organize a 
church among them. In this paper they say : ' Our ancestors, a few 
in number, who formerly belonged to the Low Dutch Beformed Church, 
settled our country about forty years since. During part of that time 
the Bev. Mr. Thomas Bomine, by permission of his church-council and 
people of the Minisinks, preached some of his time amongst us. By 
his leaving there, we again became destitute, tiU the Bev. Mr. Bun- 
schooten was installed in Minisinks congregations, who labored some 
time amongst us ; and whose labor, to appearance, has been attended 
with the blessings of God, so as we have upwards of thirty communi- 
cant members amongst us.' On the 16th of September, the Classis took 
order for the formation of the new church, and appointed Mr. Yan 



EEV. ELIAS VAN BUNSCHOOTEN. 



397 



Bunschooten to attend the duty and to ordain the officers. This ac- 
cordingly took place, with due and deliberate slowness, on the 16th 
day of April, in the following year. The church was constituted with 
fifty members, of whom the males were equal in number with the 
females. 

" He seems to have taken up his abode at the Clove in 1792, though 
still dispersing his efforts as widely as before. In 1799, at a meeting 
of the three consistories of Minisink, Walpack, and the Clove, it was 
agreed to separate. His field was now reduced, though still quite ex- 
tensive, to the latter congregation, having for an out-station Magag- 
kamack ; or, as it was called in common parlance, ' Over-the-moun- 
tain.' In a communication to the Classis, at this time, the Consistory 
of the Clove solicit that the separation of the congregations may not 
disturb the pastoral relation between the Consistory and Mr. Yan 
Bunschooten; 'forasmuch,' say they, 'as he is willing to serve us as 
many Sabbaths per year as we can reward ; for we are persuaded we 
can not obtain a sufficient support for a minister of the G-ospel with a 
family ; besides, our evangelic preacher has purchased a farm, and the 
days that the Lord will suffer hini to live, he means to spend amongst 
us.' 

"Here he ' wrought with labor and travail,' like the unmarried apos- 
tle, and rejoiced to see some increase of his spiritual children, giving 
him ' a name better than that of sons and daughters.' He seems to 
have enjoyed a precious season of revival in 1803, during the spring 
and summer of which year forty-two were added, by confession, to the 
communion of the Church. In consequence of his advanced age, he 
ceased from acting as pastor, after the commencement of the year 1812, 
though still retaining the confidence and affection of the people. Here, 
by the blessing of God upon his inherited industry and frugality, Mr. 
Yan Bunschooten rapidly increased his worldly substance. From the 
accumulations of his later years, he was enabled to become a bountiful 
benefactor of the Church of his fathers, as well as to leave to his favorite 
nephew, who was the staff of his old age, a fair domain of some seven 
hundred acres of hill and dale, together with other possessions, which 
still remain, with ample additions, in the possession of that estima- 
ble and honored family. May they follow him also to the possession of 
a better heritage on high. 

"His public ministrations were performed, as occasion required, 
either in Dutch or English. He spoke extemporaneously, though he 
wrote out a very brief outline of the course of remark to be pursued. 



398 



APPENDIX. 



These ' skeletons' are all in the Dutch language, and amply show that 
the strain of his preaching was highly evangelical. He was clear and 
distinct in argument, and altogether Scriptural in his matter. He did 
not ordinarily use loudness of voice, or much of what Cicero calls the 
'sermo corporis;' but still delivered the G-ospel message with an ear- 
nest and holy unction. We doubt not there rests upon him the ' bless- 
ing of many who were ready to perish.' 

During his last illness, which was somewhat protracted and painful, 
he was patient and submissive, and died in that peace of Glod he had 
so long proclaimed, as an ambassador of Heaven in a rebellious world. 

He died in January, 1810, and was buried at the Clove ; but in 1817 
the General Synod of the Dutch Church, in grateful memory of their 
benefactor, procured the removal of his remains to the church-yard of 
the First R. D. Church in New-Brunswick, where they now rest under a 
durable monument, with a suitable inscription. His donation was, so far 
as is known, the first endowment in our country for theological educa- 
tion, so far as we are informed. By it, sixty Christian ministers at 
least, among whom are the honored names of Abeel, Thompson, and 
Pohlman, are computed to have been aided in their preparation for their 
work." 



REY. PASCHAL N. STRONG. 



399 



APPENDIX L. 

THE EEY. PASCHAL N. STRONG-. 

Paschal Nelson Strong was born at Setalkel, township of 
Brookhaven, Long-Island, on the 16th of February, 1793. His 
preparatory studies were pursued under the care of the Rev. 
John McDonald, of Albany. He entered the Freshman class of 
Columbia College in the autumn of 1806, being then only thir- 
teen years of age ; but such was the completeness of his prepara- 
tion, that he at once took rank at the head of the class, a posi- 
tion which he maintained until his graduation in 1810, when he 
received from the faculty the highest academical honors of the 
institution, and from his class-mates the appointment of valedic- 
tory orator. Soon after, he entered the theological seminary of 
the Associate Reformed Church, then under the care of that dis- 
tinguished man, the Rev. John M. Mason. D.D. On the comple- 
tion of the prescribed course of study, in the spring of 1815, he was 
licensed to preach the Gospel by the Presbytery of New- York. 

On the 14th of July, 1816, he was (in connection with the 
Rev. John Knox, D.D.) ordained and installed as one of the pas- 
tors of the Collegiate Church of New- York. In this station he 
continued to labor with great ability and acceptance until the 
month of December, 1824, when, his health having become im- 
paired, he sailed to the island of St. Thomas, for the purpose of 
recruiting. But the voyage was stormy, and severe exposure 
aggravated his disease. After his arrival, he occasionally rallied, 
but gradually grew worse, until April 7, 1825, when he entered 
into rest. His ministry was comparatively short ; but few men 



400 



APPENDIX. 



have ever left behind them such deeply-traced memorials of pow 
er and zeal. Many of his old parishioners, even after the lapse 
of more than thirty years, speak with affectionate pride of his 
rare and fervid eloquence. 

The following notice of his character is taken from the conclu- 
sion of a sermon, preached on the occasion of his death, by the 
Eev. Dr. Knox, one of his colleagues : 

" His disposition was amiable. He was tenderly attached to his 
family. His manners were courteous. His spirit was resolute and 
generous almost to a fault. His mind was gifted in more than an or- 
dinary degree ; and his opportunities of improvement were not neglect- 
ed. With a memory peculiarly tenacious, and the power of precise 
and accurate discrimination, for one of his years, his attainments, espe- 
cially in classical and critical learning, may, without exaggeration, be 
pronounced eminent. In scholarship he excelled, and critical research 
was with him a favorite employment. 

"He wrote with elegance and force. His discourses were clear, ac- 
curate and tasteful; his style copious and adorned; his voice melo- 
dious ; his enunciation easy and natural ; his preaching evangelical and 
Faithful." 



REV. DR. WOODHULL, 



401 



APPENDIX M. 

THE REV. DR. WOODHULL. 

Selah S. "Woodhtll was born in New-York, August 4, 1786, 
TThen only twelve years of age, he had the misfortune to 
lose both his parents. He was at that time a member of the 
Freshman class in Columbia College, but was immediately re- 
moved to Yale College, where he completed his academical 
course. Soon after he was graduated, he commenced the study 
of theology, under his uncle, the Rev. John Woodhull, of Freehold, 
N. J., and prosecuted it with such zeal and success that he was 
licensed to preach the Gospel by the presbytery of New -Bruns- 
wick when only in his nineteenth year. He was first settled as 
a pastor in the Presbyterian church at Boundbrook, N. J. ; but 
after laboring there for about a year, was called to succeed the 
Rev. John B. Johnson in the charge of the Reformed Dutch 
Church of Brooklyn, where he was installed in the autumn of 
1806. Here he labored for nearly twenty years with great po- 
pularity and usefulness. Being endowed with an unusual facul- 
ty for business, he soon became a prominent member of the 
judicatories of the Church, and had a large share in devising 
and executing almost all the important arrangements connected 
with the transfer of the theological school to New-Brunswick. 
He was also for many years the able and indefatigable Domestic 
Secretary of the American Bible Society. 

In 1825 he was appointed Professor of Ecclesiastical History, 
Church Government, and Pastoral Theology in the Theological 
Seminary, and of Metaphysics and the Philosophy of the Human 



402 



APPENDIX, 



Mind in the College. He accepted these appointments, and re- 
moved to New-Brunswick in the autumn of the same year. For 
the duties of this position he was exceedingly well qualified, and 
he entered upon them with such zeal and energy as to excite the 
highest hopes of his future usefulness and success. But these 
hopes were soon extinguished by his decease in the following 
February. 

The news of his death was received with great and general 
sorrow. His congregation gave a substantial exhibition of their 
sense of his ministerial faithfulness to them and their affectionate 
regard to his memory, by a liberal gratuity to his widow. The 
General Synod took the following action : " This Synod Resolve, 
That while they humbly submit to the inscrutable Providence 
which has so soon and so suddenly called him away from these 
important stations, in the prime of life and in the midst of the 
fairest prospects of usefulness, they can not but lament, and they 
do deeply lament, the loss which the institution and the Church 
have sustained in his death. And as the piety, talents and ac- 
quirements of one so highly valued justly claim some public token 
of respect, this Synod further Resolve, To have placed over the 
grave of Professor Woodhull a neat plain monument, with a suit- 
able inscription, commemorative of his character and worth." 
This monument was erected, and now stands in the church-yard 
at New-Brunswick. 



INDEX. 



Abeel, Eev. Dr., notice of, 387 ; called to 
New- York, 219. 

Address of the Classical Letter from Am- 
sterdam noticed, 183. 

Albany, cburcb formed there, 45; Dr. 
L/s residence tbere, 151. 

Ancestry of Dr. Livingston, 12-15. 

Associate Bef. Church, correspondence 
with. 172. 

Attachment of Dr. L. to evangelical truth, 
323. 



Baptism by sprinkling in a Baptist church, 
111. 

Basset, Eev, John, D.D., Professor of 
Hebrew. 232. 

Bedford, Dr. L/s residence at, 219 ; re- 
moval from, 220. 

Bogardus, Rev. Everardus, first minister 
in New-Netherlands,- 45. 

Bonnet. Professor, 78 ; cbief instructor of 
Dr. L., 80 ; recommends him as pro- 
fessor, 146. 

Bork, Bev. Christian, converted under 
Dr. L., 154. 

Brodhead, Eev. Dr., called to New-York, 
241 ; notice of, 391. 

Bunyan's " Grace Abounding 11 alarms 
Mr. L., 23. 



Call to the ministry, Mr. L.'s anxiety con- 
cerning, 37, 38. 

Clapp, Eev. Thomas, President of Yale 
College, 17. 

Classis of Amsterdam controls the Ame- 
rican churches, 43 ; deemed tho only 
valid source of ordination, 49 ; approves 
of the Ccetus, 51 ; sends Dr. Laidlie to 
New- York, 62 ; licenses Dr. Livingston, 
125 ; tries to reconcile Ccetus and Con- 
ferentie, 13T 



Classis,proposal to form oneinAmerica,53. 
Colonizing converted Jews, Dr. L."s letter 
on, 304. 

Condict, Eev. Lewis, D.D.. 259 ; death of, 
263. 

Craumel, Bartholomew, Esq., 18 ; Mr. L. 
studies law with. 19. 

Ccetus proposed, 50 ; formed, 51. 

Conference at Utrecht, 109. 

Conference, members of, 54 ; name as- 
sumed, 54. 

Consistory of New-York call an English 
preacher, 62 ; have a civil suit against 
them, 65; call Dr. Livingston, 124; 
invite a convention of ministers and 
elders, 133 ; excuse Dr. L. from part of 
his services, 219 ; consent to his remov- 
al to New-Brunswick. 248. 

" Consolers of the Sick'," 44. 

Convention of 1771, 139 ; of 1773, 144; of 
1775, 147; of 1734, 167. 

Constitution of the Church prepared by 
Dr. L. and Dr. Eomeyn, 194 ; adopted 
by the Synod, 199. 

Conversion of Dr. Livingston, 23 ; of a 
stranger by him, 103 ; of a student at 
law, 104; of a doctor of philosophv, 
1C5-10S ; of a young man, 334 ; of Eev. 
C. Bork, 154; of a lady, 329. 



Death of an Infant, Dr. L/s letters upon, 
307, 309. 

Degree of D.D. conferred on Mr. Living- 
ston, 130 : Pres. Daggot's request to seo 
the diploma of, 143. 

De Eonde, Eev. Mr., opposes English 
preaching, S3; death of, 164 

De Witt, Eev. Thomas, appointed Profes- 
sor in Theo. Sem., 294; account of Dr. 
Brodhead quoted, 391. 

De Witt, Eev. John, appointed professor, 
298 ; sermon quoted, 144. 



404 



INDEX. 



discretion of Dr. L., 321. Knox, Eev. John, D.D., his account of Dr. 

Divinity of Christ, Dr. L.'s conflict con- ; Kuyper's quoted, 3S6 ; of Eev. P. N. 

cerning, 25. Strong. 400. 

Doddridge's i; Bise and Progress" useful Kunzie. Eev. Dr., notice of. 210. 

to Mr. L.. 24. j Kuypers. Eev. Dr., notice of, 365 ; called to 

Dutch Missionary Society, 302 ; Dr. L.'s New- York, 1S2. 

approval of, 303. 



Elsuerus, Professor, 96 : his prayers, 99. 
English language introduced into the 

Church, 57 : controversy it occasions, 

61, 65, S3-S9 ; induces many to become 

Episcopalians, 67. 
Episcopal Church established by law in 

New-York, 55 : Mr. L.'s views of. 70. 
Erskine, Dr. John. letters of 169, 170. 
Ex-king of Spain's interview with Dr. L., 



Flatbush. Dr. L.'s residence there, 177. 
ISO, 1S2. 

Fletcher, Governor, bigotry of, 57. 

Forrest, Eev. Eobert's letter on Dr. L.'s 
character, 331. 

Frelinghuysen, Eev. J. T., notice of, 359 ; 
his children, 361. 

Froeligh, Eev. Sol. D.D., appointed Pro- 
fessor of Theology. 226. 

Funeral service, published by Dr. L., 260. 



Garden-street Church, reopened, 164; 
Dutch preaching in by Dr. Kuypers, 3S5. 

Graham, Eev. Chauncey, teaches young 
Livingston, 16. 

Green, Dr. Ashbel's letter on Dr. Living- 
ston, 332. 



Hardenberg. Eev. J. E.'s letter to Dr. L., 
141 : Dr. L.'s letter to him, 1S7 ; notiee 
of, 380. 

Holland, residence of Livingston of An- 
crum there, 357 ; »<f Dr. Livingston, 95: 
state of religion in 1314, 27S. 

Iloly days. Dr. L.'s vi' % ws of, 122 ; usages 
concerning. 123. 

Huff, Mrs. B.j death of, 294. 



Inaugural oration. Dr. L.'s., 163. 



Jan r - way, Eev. Dr.'s letter on Dr. L.'s 

character, 333. 
Journal of Dr. Livingston burned, 152. 
Justification by faith, Dr. L.'s conflict 

concerning, 26. 



Kennicott, Dr. L.'s visit to, 130. 
Kent, Eev. Moss, Mr. L.'s tutor, 16. 
Kingston, Dr. L.'s residence there, 150. 



Laidlie. Eev. Dr., account of, 62 ; called to 
1ST ew-York, 62 ; usefulness, 64 ; first in- 
terview with Dr. Livingston, 75; let- 
ters from 90, 91 ; death of 164. 

Latin language, Dr. L.'s familiarity with, 
97, 336. 

>; Line of Influence." 154. 

Linn. Eev. Dr., called to New-York, 131 ; 
retires from active service, 236; death, 
236; Dr. L.'s opinion of, 181. 

Livingston of Ancrum, sketch of, 351. 

Livingston, Henry, 15. 

Livingston, John H.. born. 162 : educated, 
17: in college, 13; studies law, 19 ; is 
converted, 23: studies theology, 37; 
goes to Holland, 77 ; studies at Utrecht, 
SO; usefulness there, 103; meets Dr. 
'Witherspoon, 112; licensed, 125; ob- 
tains degree of D.D., 130; called to 
New- York, 126 ; ordained, 128 ; re- 
turns to America, 131 ; success, 134, 
178; presides in Convention ol 1771, 
139 ; marries, 149 ; resides at Kingston, 
150; Albany, 151: Poughkeepsieri54 ; 
returns to New-York, 162: appointed 
Professor of Theology, 167 ; rem ves to 
Long-Island, 219; returns to New- 
York, 227: selects psalmody, 184; re- 
vises constitution. 194; missionary zeal, 
239; made President of Queen's Col- 
lege. 245 ; goes to Xew-Brunswick, 256 ; 
procures Yan Ben Schooten fund, 250 ; 
publishes a funeral service, 260 ; again 
revises psalmody, 261 ; has assistant 
professors, 233: health declines, 306; 
death. 312: funeral, 313; epitaph, 314; 
character, 316. 

Livingston, Philip, 147. 

Livingston. Mrs. Sarch, marriage of, 149 ; 
death of. 271 : epitaph, 275. 

Livingston, Eobert, sketch of, 14. 

Lott, Abraham, letter from, 83. 

Ludlow. Eev. Dr., chosen Professor of 
Biblical Literature, 293. 



Maclure, Eev. Dr.. his article in North- 
British Eeview quoted, 154. 

Marriage of a deceased wife's sister, Dr. 
L. publishes on. 284, 343. 

Marselus, Eev. Dr.. his sermon quoted, 
327. 

Mason, Eev. Dr. John, notice of, 210. 
Mever, Eev. Dr. Hermanus, notice of, 
193. 

Miller, Eev. Dr.'s, character of Dr. L., 
337. 



ISDEX. 



405 



Messier. Eev. Dr.'s. Hollanders in New- 
Jersey, quoted. 359, 3S0. 

Methodists. Dr. L.'s opinion of, 191. 

Missions. Dr. L."s zeal for. 239 : sermons 
on. 239. 343. 

Murray. Lindley and John, letters from. 
211, 212. 



Ne^-Netherlands, first sett.emen of, 43 : 

character of the settlers, 46. 
North-Dutch Church built. 120 ; opened. 

125. 



Schorelenburg. Kev. Mr., 79; Dr. L.'s 
visits to, 80, SI. 

Schureman, Eev. Dr., notice of, 3S9 ; 
called to New-York. 241 ; to professor- 
ship in Seminary. 2 S3, 

Scriptures, Dr. L," searches, 93 : delights 
in, 330. 

Scudder. Dr. John, notice of his conver- 
sion, 154. 

State University, Dr. L."s letter concern- 
ing, 165. 

Strong, Eev. P. X., notice of, 399 ; founder 
of the Dutch Miss. Society, 302. 



Organization, progress of in the Dutch 
Church. 107. 

Plan of Union. 372. 

Prayer. Mr. L.'s early fondness for, 21 ; 
afterward, 93, 323. 330 ; answers to, 63, 
82 ; means of a lady's conversion, 329. I 

Presbyterian Church. Mr. L.'s views of, 
7u : correspondence with. 172. 

Providence, interposition of, 34: tempta- 
tion to deny, 99. 

Psalms and hymns, first selection of, 1S4: 
second, 261." 



Queen's College, origin of charter of, 369 ; 
proposed union of with Princeton, 203 ; 
revived in 1307. 239 : covenant of trus- 
tees of with Synod, 239 : Dr. L. Presid- 
ent of. 259 ; plan to convert into a theo- 
logical college, 276, 231 ; failure of the 
plan, 283: name changed to Eutgers. 
301 : prosperity of, 302. 



Eenslaer, his case noticed, 49, 50. 

Eitzema, Eev. Mr., his prudence, S3: 
thought of as divinity professor in 
King's College, 115. 

Rodgers, Eev. John, D.D., Dr. L.'s inti- 
macy with, 210. 

Eomeyn, Eev. Jeremiah, appointed Pro- 
fessor of Hebrew, 234. 

Eomeyn. Eev. John B.. Dr. L.'s letter to, 
232: his letter to Dr. L., 278. 

Eomeyn, Eev. Theodorick. notice of, 353 ; 
called to New-York, 175 ; aids to pre- 
pare the constitution. 194: appointed 
Pres. of Queen's College, Professor of 
Theology, 226. 



Tenderness of Dr. L. to the young, 320. 

Theatre. Dr. L's opinion of, 73. 74. 

Theological school formed in New-York, 
. removed to Flatbush, 177: to Bed- 
ford, L. L, 219: to New-York, 227; 
plan altered. 227, 233; removed to 
New-Brunswick, 240 ; a second pro- 
posed, 234. 289 ; endowed, 300, 301. 

Trustees in Dutch Churches, Act of Legis- 
lature concerning, 175 ; Dr. L. gets it 
altered. 177. 



Union College, Dr. L.'s letter concerning, 
174. 

Utrecht, the University of, 73, 95. 



Yan Aarsdaalen. Eev. Simeon, called to 
New-York. 171. 

Yan Benschooten, Eev. Elias. notice of, 
395 ; Dr. L.'s letter to, 250 ; his bequest, 
256 ; loss of his brother, 34, 35. 

Yoice, Mr. L.'s naturally weak, 121, 335. 



Webster, Eev. Dr., notice of, 193: has Dr. 
L. for colleague in Albany, 151 ; Dr. 
L.'s letter to, 155 ; death of, 193. 

West-India Company favor churches and 
schools in New-Netherlands, 45. 

Whitfield, sermon affects Dr. L., 32; 
meets Frelinghuysen, 860. 

TYitherspoon, Dr., meets Dr. L. in Hol- 
land. 112 ; confers as to a connection 
of the Dutch Seminary with Princeton, 
114. 119. 

Woodhull, the Eev. Dr., notice of, 401. 



Yale College, education at, 17 
enters, 17 : is graduated, IS. 



Mr. L. 



3477-9 



Deacidified using the Bookkeeper process. 
Neutralizing agent: Magnesium Oxide 
Treatment Date: May 2006 

PreservationTechnologies 

A WORLD LEADER IN PAPER PRESERVATION 

1 1 1 Thomson Park Drive 
Cranberry Township, PA 16066 
(724)779-2111 



